The fringe Cape Independence Advocacy Group (CIAG) has penned an open letter to US President Donald Trump, requesting support for a self-determination referendum in the Western Cape as a more lasting solution than the US’s Afrikaner refugee programme.
This move comes a year after the group travelled to the US to ask for support — a trip that drew sharp criticism from President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The lobby group tried to campaign in the 2024 general elections with the Referendum Party. It gained no seats, and secured only 5,110 votes in the Western Cape, equivalent to 0.26% of the provincial vote. The party was later absorbed into the FF+.
In the letter, the CIAG praised the US government for its refugee and resettlement programme for Afrikaners, which launched last year after claims that the community faced race-based discrimination and unjust policies. However, the group suggested an alternative that they believe would be more effective.
“Our request, President Trump, is this: If you want to help Afrikaners and other minorities in South Africa in a way that offers us a multi-generational future on the African continent, we ask that the United States publicly support the democratic right of the people of the Western Cape to determine their own constitutional future through a referendum,” said CIAG leader Phil Craig.
British-born Craig urged the US to engage with both the South African government and the Western Cape provincial government to encourage such a process.
“Africa is our home. We can flee, and it is a statistical fact that many have chosen to do so, but to flee is to surrender. In all sincerity and with great respect, we don’t want your pity, we want your help and support to defend our people and our civilisation here in Africa.
“We stand at a crossroads. We cannot exist outside of Africa. Our languages will be lost, our cultures absorbed, our flame extinguished. We have earned our place in the history books; our fight now is to secure our place in the future.
“Afrikaners and other minority groups do not need a new home. We love the one we have, we just need to be able to make our own decisions and to decide for ourselves how we want to be governed as opposed to having that dictated to us.”
TimesLIVE
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