President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers the state of the nation address. (GovernmentZA)
Without mentioning US President Donald Trump by name, President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday sent a message to Washington in his State of the Nation address that South Africa will not abandon policies which its new administration this week branded “anti-Americanism”.
Ramaphosa said the world was contending with climate change and violent conflict while “witnessing the rise of nationalism and protectionism, the pursuit of narrow interests and the decline of common cause”.
It was, he added, a difficult world for a developing economy to navigate, before signalling that the government would not waver in its commitment to racial redress, diversity and the energy transition — policies Trump is dismantling at home and denouncing abroad — and would continue to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
“But we are not daunted. We will not be deterred,” Ramaphosa said.
“We are a resilient people. We will not be bullied. We will stand together as a united nation.”
Speaking days after Trump announced he was suspending all donor aid to the country, in apparent response to the enactment of the Expropriation Act, Ramaphosa emphasised South Africa’s sovereignty.
“We will speak with one voice in defence of our national interest, our sovereignty and our constitutional democracy,” he said.
“By staying true to our values, by harnessing our unique strengths and endowments, and by forging a common purpose, we can turn these trying circumstances to our advantage and propel our country forward.”
He said South Africa stood for equality and solidarity.
“We stand for non-racialism and democracy, for tolerance and compassion. We stand for equal rights for women, for persons with disability and for members of the LGBTQI+ community.
“We stand for our shared humanity, not for the survival of the fittest.”
Ramaphosa acknowledged that the US decision to halt donor funding to South Africa was putting at risk treatment for people living with HIV and its target of extending that treatment to another million people infected with the virus.
“We are concerned about the potential impact of the decision by the United States government to suspend some of its funding for HIV and TB programmes in African countries for 90 days,” he said.
“This funding accounts for about 17% of our country’s HIV spend. We have been able to provide funding from our fiscus for our HIV and TB programmes over the years.”
The government was exploring ways of addressing the funding shortfall, he added.
The speech came hours after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced in a tweet that he would snub the G20 meeting of foreign ministers in Johannesburg later this month, repeating Trump’s claim that South Africa is “doing very bad things”.
It confirmed fears that the most powerful nation in the G20 will seek to frustrate South Africa’s agenda for its year-long presidency of the forum.
Ramaphosa said the principles that would guide South Africa as it leads the G20 were the pillars of its foreign policy — the promotion of human rights, peace and friendship and the strengthening of fair trade and investment ties with other countries.
It was an opportunity to place Africa and the rest of the Global South “more firmly on the international development agenda” and to underscore the need for partnership and cooperation among nations.
Government officials this week privately said they believed Trump’s broadside against South Africa was a response to the decision to accuse Israel of breaching the Genocide Convention in a landmark case before the International Court of Justice.
Ramaphosa said, in doing so, South Africa had merely respected its own obligations under the convention.
“South Africa continues to stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine who, having endured decades of illegal occupation, are now experiencing indescribable suffering,” he said.
“South Africa has acted in accordance with its obligations under the Genocide Convention by instituting proceedings against Israel at the International Court of Justice.”