Trump's false claims: challenging negative narratives with the warmth and beauty of the 'rainbow nation'

Amidst the backdrop of misinformation surrounding South Africa’s socio-political landscape, South African Tourism invites the world to experience the country's rich diversity and vibrant culture, challenging negative narratives with the warmth and beauty of the 'Rainbow Nation'.

This comes in the wake of a controversial meeting between President Cyril Ramaphosa and US President Donald Trump, where unfounded claims regarding genocide against Afrikaner farmers in South Africa were raised.

During their meeting last month in the Oval Office, Trump labelled the situation facing Afrikaner farmers as one of “genocide". However, Ramaphosa denied these claims, asserting that while South Africa faces significant crime challenges, they affect citizens across all racial backgrounds and he asked for assistance to address the high levels of crime.

As international scrutiny mounts, a second wave of Afrikaners landed in the US last week under Trump's controversial resettlement programme that will eventually see 8,000 individuals relocating. In 2018, during his first term in office, Trump referred to countries on the African continent as “shithole countries”.

According to reports, in addressing concerns about false narratives affecting South Africa’s global image, Michael Delaney, general manager of Radisson RED Johannesburg-Rosebank, cautioned against narratives seeking to make South Africa look bad and argued the importance of highlighting the country’s positive attributes.

“Many of the misconceptions can be countered by showcasing the friendliness of its people, natural beauty, and cultural diversity,” he said, noting that most international visitors’ perceptions of South Africa tend to improve significantly once they arrive.

Trump's religious advisor, Pastor Mark Burns, visited South Africa to investigate the alleged genocide of white Afrikaner farmers. He later dismissed the EFF and Julius Malema as attention seekers for chanting “Kill the Boer, kill the farmer.”

Tourism bodies and an international relations specialist responded to inquiries about the actions taken and necessary measures needed to challenge Trump's genocide narrative.

Toni Gumede, manager in the office of the CEO of Brand South Africa, said since Trump took office, Brand SA has consistently responded to his statements in line with the country’s values.

“Ours is to continually drive messaging that not only balances whatever the narrative may be in the environment, but to highlight facts from misinformation in all our touchpoints domestically and internationally,” she said.

She said Brand SA’s nation branding mandate encompasses the promotion of South Africa’s image, competitiveness, institutional credibility, and attractiveness for investment, tourism, trade, and skills mobility.

“Brand South Africa is tasked with improving how South Africa is perceived globally. The objective is to position the country as an attractive destination to invest in, visit, work, study, or do business with,” she said.

Gumede said as an organisation, Brand SA continuously implements both proactive and reactive strategies through communications, marketing, and stakeholder engagements across the globe to ensure that we influence perceptions about the country.

“We work with and through a broad spectrum of partners and stakeholders, including business, civil society, and government,” she said.

Some of the issues that Brand SA has addressed is South Africa's Expropriation Act of 2025 and the legacy of land dispossession among others.

Gumede said Brand SA also drives a domestic programme called Play Your Part to get South Africans involved in positive social impact, including those in the diaspora, our very own Global South Africans, and ensure visibility/messaging about South Africa at global platforms like WEF, the recent SA-France investment Forum, and many others.

“According to the 2025 Global Reputation Study conducted by Bloom Consulting and Brand SA, South Africa’s global brand equity is on an upward trajectory, with five out of six key dimensions showing improvement: Exports, Investment, Tourism, Work, and Study,” she said.

Gumede said taken together, these results affirm the strategic value of Brand South Africa’s interventions globally.

“Nearing or exceeding global affinity thresholds in Exports and Investment, and showing resilience across other dimensions, the nation brand is increasingly seen as credible, competitive, and globally connected which is a critical enabler for trade, tourism, and human capital attraction,” she said.

Global manager PR and communications for South African Tourism, Thandiwe Mathibela, said South Africa stands ready to welcome travellers from across the globe.

“We invite the world to discover the joy of South Africa - for a memorable, long-lasting experience,” she said.

Home to over 60 million people, Mathibela said South Africa celebrates unity in diversity. “The spirit of ubuntu — shared humanity — defines our national character. South Africa’s social fabric is defined by the everyday coexistence of people from diverse backgrounds, reflecting the stability and cohesion that support our broader economic and tourism environment.”

In 2024, Mathibela said over 8.5 million international visitors chose South Africa, with continued growth from markets including the US, UK, Germany, China, and the rest of Africa.

“As we prepare to host the G20 Leaders’ Summit in November this year, our ability to deliver secure, high-level global events has been reaffirmed,” she said.

Mathibela emphasised that safety is a priority, and that the government is actively investing in traveller safety through expanded safety monitor programmes and infrastructure upgrades. “South Africa continues to invest in quality-assured tourism facilities to ensure high service excellence and seamless sustainable visitor experience.”

International relations expert André Thomashausen argued that South Africa should rely on facts and refer to the recently updated "Investigative Report on White Murders in South Africa Since 1992" by the European Centre for Information Policy and Security (www.ecips.eu).

He said this is an unbiased assessment that records 12,567 farm attacks over the past 3 decades and that this cannot be “wished away.”

The report states that in 2019 alone, there were 552 attacks and 57 murders, primarily targeting white farm owners and their families, and although white farmers are disproportionately affected due to their prevalence in commercial farming, farm workers and smallholders of all races are also victims. Robbery is the main motive, with racially or politically motivated attacks being rare.

The report recommended improved intelligence, data transparency, crime prevention strategies, and balanced public communication to tackle farm attacks amidst South Africa’s complex environment.

“The SA government count since 1994 indicates 3,398 murdered farmers. The Wikipedia entry on ‘South African Farm Attacks’ refers to a murder rate of 274 per 100,000 farmers, as against a national average of 61 per 100,000,” said Thomashausen.

Thomashausen said South African farmers make up the profession suffering from the highest murder risk, in South Africa and even globally.

“It is good that the recent presidential meeting in Washington DC has refocused the debates on South Africa's inequality index, giving it [the] worst Gini coefficients recorded anywhere. This cannot be resolved by ‘nationalising’ relative and absolute wealth but only by an aggressive economic growth and employment policy,” he said.

According to Thomashausen, the meeting in Washington DC behind closed doors focused on how to overcome the development failure in the South African economy. “Hopefully this will reflect in the abolishment of tariffs on both sides and stronger foreign investment support for South Africa.”

karen.singh@inl.co.za