The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) has confirmed that a high-level delegation of senior officials met with counterparts in Washington, D.C., including senior officials at the White House and the State Department, to clarify misconceptions about the country, and strengthen bilateral relations.
The delegation, which was led by South Africa’s G20 Sherpa and the Director General of DIRCO Zane Dangor, engaged with counterparts in Washington, D.C., including senior officials at the White House and the State Department.
The engagements follow the recent visits by lobby groups AfriForum and Solidarity to Washington, where they called for the US administration to intervene in the country’s affairs, in what they described as unjust laws.
This led to Washington imposing several sanctions on South Africa, with fears that Pretoria would also be kicked out of AGOA.
The department said the delegation followed up discussions that were initiated by expelled US Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool.
“The delegation clarified key issues and misconceptions in meetings with the National Security Council’s Africa Director, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, as well as Treasury Department representatives.
“We believe that these dialogues will assist to refine the current administration’s understanding of South Africa’s position on critical matters, fostering a more nuanced perspective.
“The delegation directly addressed the perception that the South African Government’s policies are designed to violate the human rights of minorities in post-apartheid South Africa,” read a statement from the department.
The department said one of the issues discussed was the Expropriation Act, which the department said the delegation were given an opportunity to clarify that the nil compensation clause is not designed to facilitate unlawful land seizures and undermine property investment, but under exceptional circumstances.
“Where the land is not being used and the owner’s main purpose is not to develop the land or use it to generate income, but to benefit from appreciation of its market value.
“Where an organ of state holds land that it is not using for its core functions and is not reasonably likely to require the land for its future activities in that regard, and the organ of state acquired the land for no consideration. Where an owner has abandoned the land by failing to exercise control over it despite being reasonably capable of doing so. Where the market value of the land is equivalent to, or less than, the present value of direct state investment or subsidy in the acquisition and beneficial capital improvement of the land,” explained the statement.
In addition, the department said officials managed to address misconceptions on what has been presented by some as race laws designed to undermine minority rights in the country.
“To this end the senior officials presented information, which highlights the persuasive racial and structural inequality that continues to divide South Africa in all areas of the nation. The post-apartheid administration is constitutionally mandated to correct the injustices of the past. These initiatives are consistent with the efforts to ensure that post-apartheid South Africa entrenches human dignity, the achievement of equality and the advancement of human rights and freedoms, non-racialism, non-sexism and the supremacy of our constitution and the rule of law,” highlighted the statement.
