South African authorities have arrested seven Kenyan nationals and are set to deport them after they were accused of working without proper documentation on a United States government programme that offers refugee status to white Afrikaners.
The South African Department of Home Affairs confirmed the arrests on Wednesday, saying the individuals were found working illegally at a centre involved in processing applications for resettlement to the United States.
The development comes amid controversy surrounding a policy announced in May by the administration of US President Donald Trump, which offered refugee status to members of the white Afrikaner minority. The policy was justified by claims that Afrikaners face discrimination and even “genocide”, allegations that the South African government has repeatedly rejected.
According to South African authorities, the United States government had engaged Kenyan nationals linked to a Christian non governmental organisation based in Kenya to travel to South Africa to help process applications under the programme.
During a raid on an application processing centre in Johannesburg on Tuesday, officials said “seven Kenyan nationals were discovered engaging in work despite only being in possession of tourist visas, in clear violation of their conditions of entry into the country”.
The department added that “they were arrested and issued with deportation orders, and will be prohibited from entering South Africa again for a five year period”.
The Home Affairs Department said the operation followed intelligence reports indicating that several Kenyan nationals had entered South Africa on tourist visas and had unlawfully taken up employment at a facility handling applications of what it described as so called refugees to the United States.
Although President Trump largely suspended refugee admissions after assuming office in January, his administration made an exception for Afrikaners, a move Pretoria says is based on false claims of persecution.
In May, a first group of about 50 Afrikaners, descendants of early European settlers in South Africa, were flown to the United States on a chartered aircraft. Additional groups have reportedly travelled in smaller numbers on commercial flights.
South African authorities said no United States officials were arrested during the raid and stressed that the operation did not take place at a diplomatic site. They also said no prospective refugees were harassed and confirmed that the government had engaged both US and Kenyan officials on the matter.
Relations between Washington and Pretoria have deteriorated sharply since Trump returned to office, with the United States criticising South Africa over several policy issues, expelling its ambassador in March and imposing 30 percent trade tariffs.
Reacting to reports of the raid, US State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said interference with American refugee operations was “unacceptable”.
He added that Washington was “seeking immediate clarification from the South African government and expect full cooperation and accountability”.
