US to Reduce Number of Nigerian Refugee Admissions in New Policy
- The Trump administration has reduced the US refugee admission ceiling to 7,500, the lowest in the nation’s history
- Most of the available refugee slots are set to go to white Afrikaner South Africans described as “victims of discrimination”
- Refugee advocacy organisations condemn the move, warning it damages the credibility and moral authority of US refugee policy
The United States government has announced a drastic reduction in refugee admissions for the coming year, setting the cap at just 7,500 and designating white South Africans as the primary beneficiaries.
The figure marks the lowest refugee ceiling in US history and a steep decline from the 125,000 admissions allowed under former President Joe Biden.
Source: Getty Images
The policy shift was revealed in a notice published on Thursday, October 30 stating that the reduction was “justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the national interest,” BBC reported.
No explicit reason was offered, but it follows months of rhetoric from President Donald Trump portraying white farmers in South Africa as victims of persecution.
Priority for Afrikaner settlers
According to the Federal Register, most of the available refugee slots will go to Afrikaner South Africans and “other victims of illegal or unjust discrimination in their respective homelands.”
Source: Getty Images
The Afrikaners, descendants of Dutch and French settlers, have been the focus of Trump’s repeated claims that white farmers in South Africa are being “killed and persecuted.”
Earlier this year, Trump halted critical US aid to South Africa and offered relocation opportunities to Afrikaner families. That move led to diplomatic friction and the eventual expulsion of South Africa’s ambassador to Washington, Ebrahim Rasool, after he accused Trump of “mobilising a supremacism” and using the issue as “a dog whistle for white victimhood.”
During a tense Oval Office meeting in May, Trump confronted President Cyril Ramaphosa over alleged attacks on white farmers, even playing a video purportedly showing burial sites for victims.
The footage was later revealed to be from a 2020 protest where crosses symbolised cumulative deaths over many years, not a recent mass killing.
Critics condemn US' new refugee policy
Refugee advocacy groups have widely condemned the new policy. Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president of Global Refuge, described the decision as one that “lowers our moral standing” and “undermines the credibility” of America’s refugee programme.
Refugees International also dismissed the justification, saying the policy “makes a mockery of refugee protection and of American values.”
The group stated that Afrikaners “have no plausible claim on refugee status” and are not escaping systematic persecution.
Nigerian man living in U.S. for 10 years arrested
Recall that Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Baltimore had arrested a Nigerian national in Lanham who was previously convicted of second-degree rape and third-degree sex offense against a Maryland minor.
The 37-year-old man, who entered the U.S. legally in 2015, had multiple arrests over several years and later faced additional charges involving another woman
He is now in custody pending removal proceedings before an immigration judge who will determine whether he will be deported
List of African immigrants scheduled for deportation from US
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the United States government had released updated data revealing that tens of thousands of African immigrants are currently listed for deportation.
The figures, current as of November 24, 2024, highlight the growing focus on immigration enforcement under the Trump administration, with nationals from Somalia, Mauritania, and Nigeria topping the list.
Proofreading by Kola Muhammed, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
