South Africans Hail Ramaphosa for Keeping Cool amid Trump’s High-Profile White House ‘Humiliation’

South Africans are appreciating President Cyril Ramaphosa’s calm demeanour amid US President Donald Trump’s recent ambush at the Oval Office. However, questions are also arising whether his trip to Washington was a mistake. 

Ramaphosa had hoped to repair diplomatic relations with the United States that have nosedived since Trump’s return to the White House in January. However, all hopes were crushed after the US president, instead of having a civil conversation, pushed a false claim of a “white genocide” in South Africa.

Drama Between Trump and Ramaphosa 

Trump interrupted his talks with Ramaphosa to show a video allegedly depicting violence against white South Africans — a move that left his guest visibly uncomfortable.

He asked for the Oval Office lights to be dimmed before playing the footage. As the video played — featuring images that Trump described as “burial sites” —Ramaphosa turned his face away. 

The US president spent most of his time confronting his visitor with baseless claims that South Africa’s white minority farmers are being murdered and having their land seized. 

Ramaphosa Clarified His Stance

Ramaphosa pushed back at his American counterpart, emphasising the voices in the video do not reflect the policies of his government. 

South Africa’s Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen, who is white, backed Ramaphosa’s comments, explaining that the people in the video were opposition figures, and that his party, the Democratic Alliance, had joined forces with Ramaphosa’s to keep such elements out of government.

Also Read: The Broader Context Behind Trump-Ramaphosa Showdown

What are South Africans Saying

Rebecca Davis of the national Daily Maverick, a white South African, appreciated Ramaphosa for keeping his cool, adding "He didn’t get Zelenskyed.” Her reaction was in reference to Trump’s previous showdown with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who had a much worse experience at the White House. 

Meanwhile, veteran journalist Milton Nkosi asked, “What else could Cyril have done… You’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t. I think they were caught completely unawares. How on earth could you have planned for that? 

On social media, too, consensus seemed to be favouring Ramaphosa. One user said, “Remained calm collected and humble in the face of bigotry and lies.”

“Many of you might not like Cyril Ramaphosa, but the guy is by far smarter than Donald Trump and Elon Musk combined,” another added. 

Notably, South Africa does have one of the highest murder rates globally, but most victims are Black and poor.