Afrikaner politician asks Trump for help after refugee application is denied

Former Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) provincial council member SJ du Venage has appealed to President Donald Trump to “clear” his name after his refugee application was denied.

The St Helena Bay Afrikaner politician, of the Western Cape, is among thousands of white South Africans who have been rejected from the US resettlement programme, which is open to racial minorities facing “persecution” in the country.

FORMER AFRIKANER POLITICIAN ASKS TRUMP FOR HELP

In a Facebook post, SJ du Venage appealed to President Trump to “please clear my name”, relating to his rejected refugee application.

Du Venage explained that he was involved in conservative politics – and was once a FF Plus provincial council member in the Western Cape – where he “stood for freedom of farmers, and the rights of the Afrikaner people”. He also questioned why former ANC MP Lawrence E. McDonald, and not himself,  had been resettled in the US under the refugee programme. 

He shared: “My application was terminated after a six-hour interview that I experienced as intimidating.

“The interviewing officer was, in my view, a racist and left-wing individual who had no understanding of South Africa’s history, current situation, or the Afrikaner community, and showed no context or knowledge of our past or present realities.

SJ du Venage – who did not reveal why his application was rejected – claimed that the “risks” of being rejected from the refugee programme was “never communicated to me”.

He continued: “If I had been informed that a rejected application could result in me being permanently recorded as a refugee applicant and prevent me from obtaining any visas to travel to other countries, I WOULD NOT HAVE APPLIED.

He added: “I am not asking USCIS (US Citizenship and Immigration Services) to reopen or reconsider my application. 

“I ask only that USCIS CLEAR MY NAME, remove any refugee-applicant designation or adverse notation associated with my name from your systems wherever legally possible, and confirm in writing that I am no longer recorded as a refugee applicant”

REFUGEE APPLICATIONS REJECTED

In recent months, thousands of refugee applications have been rejected, and some individuals have had their status revoked by USCIS based on the following reasons…

• Fraud and misrepresentation 
• Ineligibility as per requirements
• Security and terrorism concerns
• Criminal history

USCIS has stated that it is under no obligation to grant an appeal of a refugee applicant’s rejection.

However, in rare cases, the application may be reviewed if evidence is missing or a factual error is found. This is entirely discretionary.

The details of rejected refugee applicants will remain on record, and individuals may be required to answer questions about the process and their alleged fear of persecution.

In future US visa applications, rejected refugee applications may be relevant to an officer’s assessment but do not automatically disqualify applicants.