© Getty Images

Trump's statement -

On February 2, 2025, President Trump took to his social media site, Truth Social, to say that South Africa has been “confiscating land and treating certain classes of people very badly.”

© Getty Images

Funding - Next, he stated that he would be cutting off funding to South Africa until there is a full investigation of the situation at hand.

© Getty Images

South Africa’s response -

The South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa, told his nation's parliament that they “will not be bullied.” While a specific “bully” was not named, Cyril Ramaphosa ensured the people that South Africans are “resilient” and that they “will not be deterred.”

© Getty Images

Prior statements -

During his first term, back in 2018, President Trump said that he would order the then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to look into seizures of land and killings of white farmers in South Africa.

© Getty Images

Comments -

These types of comments are part of a longer-standing, false narrative believed by right-wing groups in South Africa. The belief is that white people are being dispossessed of their lands and are victims of genocide.

© Getty Images

Elon Musk - Elon Musk was born in South Africa and has repeated this myth multiple times on X over the years. In 2023, he even accused South Africans in the left-wing party of “openly pushing for genocide of white people.”

© Getty Images

Ramaphosa -

The South African president, Ramaphosa, took to X, formerly Twitter, on February 3, 2025, to refute Trump’s statements and said that no land had been confiscated

© Shutterstock

The Expropriation Act -

President Ramaphosa also mentioned that the new Expropriation Act isn’t a confiscation instrument but instead a legal process ensuring the public has access to land in an “equitable and just manner.”

© Getty Images

The response -

Elon Musk responded on X inquiring about the supposedly racist ownership laws. Ramaphosa allegedly then spoke with Elon Musk on the phone about this misinformation.

© Getty Images

Marco Rubio -

Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, that he won’t be attending the G20 Summit later in the year in Johannesburg due to the fact that, according to him, South Africa is “doing very bad things.”

© Getty Images

What is the Expropriation Act of 2024 - South Africa’s latest land reform policy, The Expropriation Act of 2024 is aimed at resolving ownership inequalities that started in the pre-1994 apartheid system ruled by the white minority.

© Shutterstock

According to the government -

According to the government, this law “outlines how expropriation can be done and on what basis.” Land that is for a public purpose or that is in the public’s interest, can be taken by the government.

© Shutterstock

Compensation -

This law explains what “just and equitable” compensation is, however, there is one clause that says that the government might not have to provide compensation in certain scenarios.

© Shutterstock

Which certain scenarios? -

When the land is either not in use and its main purpose is to appreciate in market value or when it has been abandoned.

© Shutterstock

Can an agreement be reached? - With this law, an expropriating authority who is either an “organ of state or person empowered by it or any other legislation” should first try to reach an agreement with the owner of the land or the right holder in order to acquire the property.

© Shutterstock

Has any land been expropriated yet? -

No, since the legislation took effect a few weeks ago, no land has been expropriated.

© Shutterstock

History -

The apartheid ended in 1994. However, South Africa is still dealing with a lot of racial inequality in land ownership specifically.

© Getty Images

A 1913 law -

A 1913 law forced thousands of Black families to leave their land. This meant that African land ownership was at only 7%, though in 1936 it did rise to 13%.

© Getty Images

Quotas - The quotas meant that white people were able to own large plots of land while Black people were forced into townships that were crowded.

© Getty Images

1991 -

In 1991, the racial aspect of the land measures was repealed. However, economists Johann Kirsten and Whidile Sihloo of Stellenbosch University have said that approximately 63% of the land was owned by white farmers and that the post-apartheid government had set targets for redistributing 30% of the land within a five-year period.

© Shutterstock

The target -

This target date has shifted numerous times and now is set at 2030.

© Shutterstock

2017 -

In 2017, a land audit showed that 8% of the population comprised of white people, owned approximately three-fourths of farms and agricultural holdings. Black South Africans on the other hand, owned only 4%.

© Getty Images

Why is this the case? -

Expropriation advocates say that it’s because “until the new law, the government was only able to buy land for redistribution to Black owners under a "willing-seller, willing-buyer" model. This left lots of land owned by white people, unutilized.

© Getty Images

When was the Expropriation Act of 2024 passed? - The act was passed last year before South Africa held their national elections and the ANC party lost its majority for the first time in post-apartheid history.

© Getty Images

The Democratic Alliance -

The DA or the Democratic Alliance which is the second-largest South African government party of the National Unity (GNU) believes that the Expropriation Act goes too far in allowing the government to take land without compensation. They argue that it could hurt the economy and jobs in South Africa.

© Getty Images

The Freedom Front Plus -

This right-wing party in South Africa and also a GNU member says that it will challenge the constitutionality of this law.

© Getty Images

Their claim -

They claim that the law poses risks in terms of property rights in South Africa and that it can send “an extremely negative message to the international community” who may not be persuaded to invest somewhere where their property could be expropriated.

Sources: (Time) (Britannica)

See also: What exactly are tariffs and why does Trump favor them so much

© Getty Images