'Why don't you arrest him?': Trump challenges Ramaphosa to arrest Julius Malema over ‘Kill the Boer’

United States President Donald Trump has called for the arrest of South African political leader Julius Malema over his use of the controversial “Kill the Boer” chant, escalating already strained relations between the two countries.

Trump made the remarks during a high-level meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House on Wednesday.

The meeting, attended by senior government officials and business leaders from both nations, was meant to address growing diplomatic and economic tensions.

Trump's comments followed the circulation of a video clip showing Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Malema speaking in Parliament about land reform. 

The EFF claims the clip was misused to push a misleading narrative.

Tensions between Washington and Pretoria have intensified since Trump’s second term, especially after his vocal criticism of South Africa’s land reform policy, which he described as a “seizure of land” from white Afrikaner farmers, an assertion the South African government has denied.

Relations worsened further in February when the United States cut HIV/AIDS funding to South Africa. 

More recently, the US granted refugee status to 49 white South Africans, citing racial discrimination, another claim denied by Pretoria

Earlier this year, Trump expressed his opposition to South Africa’s Expropriation Act on Truth Social and on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“How could we be expected to go to South Africa for the very important G20 meeting when land confiscation and genocide is the primary topic of conversation?” Trump posted.

 “They are taking the land of white farmers and then killing them and their families. Is this where we want to be for the G20? I don’t think so.”

The South African delegation to Washington includes Cabinet ministers and business leaders:

* Ronald Lamola, minister of international relations and cooperation

* Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, minister in the presidency

* Parks Tau, minister of trade, industry and competition

* John Steenhuisen, minister of agriculture

* Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, professional golfers

* Johann Rupert, founder of Richemont and chairman of Remgro

* Adrian Gore, vice president of Business Unity South Africa

* Zingiswa Losi, president of the Congress of South African Trade Unions

The US delegation includes:

* Vice President J.D. Vance

* Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

* Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick

* Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau

* Susie Wiles, assistant to the president and chief of staff

* Elon Musk, a South African-born entrepreneur and special government employee at the Department of Government Efficiency

* Dr. Massad Boulos, senior adviser for Africa and Arab and Middle Eastern affairs

IOL Politics