John Steenhuisen Pours Cold Water on Trump’s “White Genocide” Claim: “There Is No White Genocide in South Africa”

Democratic Alliance (DA) leader John Steenhuisen has firmly rejected claims by former United States President Donald Trump that there is a “white genocide” taking place in South Africa, saying the assertion is not supported by facts or crime statistics.

Speaking during a briefing with the Press Gallery Association on Thursday, Steenhuisen acknowledged that South Africa faces serious crime challenges, including brutal farm murders and rural safety concerns, but stressed that these issues do not amount to a racially targeted genocide against white South Africans.

“There was no white genocide in South Africa,” Steenhuisen said. “There is a very big problem with crime, yes, and farm murders are often brutal in their nature. But if one looks at the cold, hard statistics, it’s very clear where the crime problem is and who is bearing the burden of crime. It is not a white genocide. Not at all.”

He emphasised that violent crime affects South Africans across all racial groups.

“We have white people murdered, yes, but we also have coloured and black South Africans, as well as Indian South Africans and people of South Asian descent, who are being murdered as well,” he said.

Trump “Fed a Lie” About South Africa

Steenhuisen’s comments come after Trump once again reiterated this week that white South Africans are being systematically targeted — a claim that has circulated for years in certain international and online circles.

According to the DA leader, Trump’s position appears to be based on misinformation rather than evidence.

“It’s clear that President Trump has been fed a lie about South Africa,” Steenhuisen said. “Despite all the evidence to the contrary, the hard statistics and many efforts to demonstrate that this is not the case, that remains his perception of the country.”

He added that Trump was pushing a predetermined agenda, regardless of facts placed before him.

“He is not going to believe it because he has to push that agenda. There’s a famous saying: you can take a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.”

South Africa’s Own Mistakes Acknowledged

While defending the country against what he called false narratives, Steenhuisen was also critical of South Africa’s own foreign policy decisions over the past two decades, saying some had damaged relations with key allies, including the United States.

“South Africa has done a lot of things wrong in the last 20 years and made some terrible decisions,” he said, citing the Lady R incident as one such example that angered international partners.

“We have put sticks in the eyes of some of our trading partners and allies, and it has left them bewildered and angry. But to take things that are not true and turn them into truth is simply not fair, and it’s not in the interests of either side.”

A Missed Opportunity for Partnership

Steenhuisen described it as unfortunate that the US risked undermining its relationship with what he called the most industrialised country on the African continent.

“South Africa is a wonderful country. There are incredible things happening here, but yes, there are bad things happening here — just as in the United States,” he said.

He pointed to South Africa’s Constitution and Bill of Rights, noting that they closely resemble the democratic values the US claims to uphold.

“Our commitment to democracy, our journey to democracy, and the values in our Constitution stand out as a beacon on the continent,” he said. “To eschew a relationship with us based on false perceptions fed by people who do not act in the best interests of the country is a very sad day.”

Steenhuisen warned that the US would ultimately be the loser if it chose to distance itself from South Africa on the basis of misinformation.

Social Media Reaction: Divided and Hostile

Steenhuisen’s remarks sparked a flurry of reactions on social media, many of them critical and mocking. Some accused him of aligning himself with the ANC, while others questioned his motives.

Comments included:

• “That guy silently became an ANC member.”
• “He’ll say anything for a cheeseburger. He took the KFC deal.”
• “For a moment there I saw fat check and not fact check.”
• “He couldn’t say that in the White House in front of Trump.”
• “Wolf in sheep’s clothing.”
• “How much did they pay you to say this? Free shirt and KFC?”

Others, however, defended his position, arguing that he had simply stated an uncomfortable truth.

“The man has only spoken a simple truth. There is no white genocide in South Africa,” one user wrote.

Another added: “The truth is the truth and it knows no colour.”

A Polarised Debate

The debate around farm murders, rural safety, and international perceptions of South Africa remains deeply polarised. While farmers continue to raise legitimate concerns about safety and violent crime in rural areas, Steenhuisen’s comments underline the importance of separating real security challenges from racially charged narratives that do not align with the facts.

For South Africa’s agricultural sector and its international partners, the challenge remains how to address crime honestly and effectively — without allowing misinformation to define the country on the global stage.