South Africa's president pushes back on Trump's demand to arrest politician who chanted 'kill the farmer'

JOHANNESBURG - South African President Cyril Ramaphosa deed backmost Tuesday against President Donald Trump's demand that absorption person Julius Malema should beryllium arrested, for repeatedly chanting "kill the farmer."

Also connected Tuesday, a elder person wrong South Africa’s authorities told Fox News Digital the chant "inflamed hatred" and called for "legal consequences."

In the White House Oval Office past week, President Trump had a video showing Malema making the chant shown to the then-visiting Ramaphosa. Trump told the South African person that Malema should beryllium arrested.

On Sunday, Malema, person of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) governmental party, which drew conscionable nether 10% of the ballot successful past May’s South African predetermination and is not portion of the authorities of nationalist unity, told a assemblage of thousands astatine a rally successful South Africa’s Free State, "I will ne'er beryllium intimidated by Donald Trump."

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Julius Malema, person of the Economic Freedom Fighters, erstwhile again calls to "kill the Boer" astatine a caller rally successful South Africa. (Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Just 4 days aft the president’s telephone that helium should beryllium arrested, Malema launched into the chant again, shouting to cheers "Shoot to kill. Kill the Boer (Afrikaans farmer), the farmer." The Afrikaners are descendants of mostly Dutch settlers who archetypal arrived successful South Africa successful 1652.

Appearing to privation to stress defiance, Malema past chanted "I repeat, termination the Boer, the farmer."

Reacting to President Trump calling for Malema’s arrest, President Ramaphosa connected Tuesday told reporters determination are nary plans to detain the EFF leader. "It's not a substance wherever we request to beryllium instructed by anyone (to) spell and apprehension this one. (Malema) We are a precise arrogant sovereign state that has its ain laws, that has its ain processes."

Ramaphosa continued that South Africa’s equivalent of the Supreme Court, the Constitutional Court, had decided successful 2022 the slogan "kill the Boer, termination the farmer" was lone a decades-old "liberation chant and slogan, and it's not meant to beryllium a connection that elicits oregon calls upon anyone to spell and beryllium killed, and that is what our tribunal decided." Critics constituent retired that Malema sits connected South Africa’s Judicial Services Commission – the assemblage that appoints judges here.

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Cyril Ramaphosa waves arsenic helium arrives up of his inauguration arsenic president astatine the Union Buildings successful Tshwane, South Africa, connected Wednesday, June 19, 2024. (Kim Ludbrook/Pool Photo via AP)

All of this is against the inheritance of President Trump accusing South Africa of genocide against farmers and inviting truthful acold 49 Whites to alert to the U.S. arsenic refugees.

"That chant has nary spot successful a antiauthoritarian South Africa," the Democratic Alliance (DA) party’s Ian Cameron told Fox News Digital. The DA is South Africa’s main absorption party. They are members of the authorities of nationalist unity, with Cameron serving arsenic chairperson of the Portfolio Committee connected Police.

Cameron said that Malema singing the chant again this past play was "continuing to disagreement nine and inflame hatred and mistrust. (It) plays a circumstantial relation successful wherefore workplace attacks successful South Africa are truthful unique: portion brutal attacks proceed successful agrarian areas, helium sings that opus with pride, and galore of his supporters openly observe the unit connected societal media."

Crosses are planted connected a hillside astatine the White Cross Monument, each 1 marking a White husbandman who has been killed successful a workplace murder, connected Oct. 31, 2017 successful Ysterberg, adjacent Langebaan, South Africa. (GULSHAN KHAN/AFP via Getty Images)

"I bash judge that Julius Malema’s repeated incitement—especially done songs similar ‘Kill the Boer’, crosses a unsafe and unacceptable line," Cameron continued. "Freedom of code is simply a cornerstone of democracy, but it cannot beryllium utilized arsenic a shield for promoting violence. At the precise least, determination should beryllium ineligible consequences for incitement of violence, and our justness strategy indispensable enactment without fearfulness oregon favor."

Ramaphosa said he was not going to person radical arrested "willy nilly," adding connected Tuesday, "we are a state wherever state of look is the bedrock of our law arrangement."

None of this has phased Malema, who is connected grounds saying, "I volition sing the opus arsenic and erstwhile I like."

Fox News Digital reached retired to Malema but received nary response.

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Attacks connected some White and Black farmers present are real. Cameron told Fox News Digital, "I’ve personally stood successful the aftermath of these attacks. I’ve walked into scenes that resembled abattoirs. I retrieve 1 workplace wherever the victim’s fingernail marks were inactive embedded successful the carpet from wherever helium was dragged and tortured. These are not mean crimes and often see disproportionate violence."