Orania, a whites-only Afrikaner enclave in South Africa, is reportedly seeking US recognition as an autonomous entity, with its leaders recently visiting the US to gain support.
According to Reuters, community leader Joost Strydom cited South Africa’s diversity as a reason for decentralisation while rejecting accusations of racial division.
Orania’s leaders were vague about the assistance they sought but emphasised investment in infrastructure and energy independence rather than direct aid, the report said.
“We wanted to… gain recognition, with the American focus on South Africa now,” the report quoted Strydom as saying.
“We told them South Africa is such a … diverse country that it’s not a good idea to try and manage it centrally.”
The South African government dismisses Orania’s claims to autonomy, emphasising national unity.
Right-wing Americans have shown support for Afrikaner nationalists, linking their struggle to opposition against diversity policies.
Despite economic struggles in South Africa, the town remains self-sufficient, drawing criticism and admiration alike.
Last week, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in the Northern Cape have criticised Orania, arguing that its existence undermines national unity.
[WATCH] The EFF in the Northern Cape has vowed to push the provincial and national governments to reconsider their position on the existence of Orania and their support for its self-determination stance. SABC News reporter Margaret Mothibi filed this report. pic.twitter.com/axUC1x9Xq1
— SABC News (@SABCNews) March 26, 2025
However, according to SABC News, Strydom defended the town, saying it aims to preserve Afrikaans culture rather than promote racism.
He urged critics to see Orania as a model for self-sufficiency, claiming the town engages with other communities to share its approach but insists they must take responsibility for their own development.
“We take responsibility for our heritage. We do not stop anyone to do the same. In fact, the Orania movement and many other Orania institutions engaged with communities like the Xhosa people of…, the …. people, the Barolong people. We engaged with them and said, ‘listen, here’s a model’. We cannot come and execute this model for you. We cannot come and vote for you. The whole thing of Orania is to say you must do this yourself. We will try to take responsibility for ours, but here’s a lot of winning list recipes that you can use to build yours,” Strydom said.
In February, the Orania Movement expressed appreciation for US President Donald Trump’s support for Afrikaners following his offer to allow South African citizens to seek refuge in the United States.
Trump recently cut funding to South Africa over its land expropriation policy and accused the government of targeting white farmers, despite the law stating that only barren, unused land is subject to expropriation.
Strydom said during an interview with Newzroom Afrika, that Afrikaners do not seek handouts but rather recognition, both locally and internationally.
He said that Afrikaners belong in Africa and have no intention of relocating to another continent.
“We are not necessarily interested in tax dollars, handouts and help. What we want, we already got to an extent. We want recognition. We want recognition from abroad, we want recognition locally and we want recognition from our peers. That is to say, firstly those people are people upon themselves and they have the right to make certain decisions for themselves. That is what we want.
“We don’t want people’s money, we don’t want people’s handouts. We as Orania want larger, greater recognition. And I think that is not too much to ask. I think that is very reasonable.”
Strydom added: “What Orania is saying is that they come from a long line of Afrikaners, people who are only at home in Africa. We cannot go back to Europe. We cannot belong in Europe. We belong in Africa so if people recognise us as part of theirs, as part of the continent, as part of this country in terms of our history – a long history, more than 400 years.
“We want to build a future for ourselves here, and that is the crux of the matter.”
