South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola demands answers from new United States (US) Ambassador over “I don’t care what your courts say, kill the Boer is hate speech” remarks.
BY MUSA MDLULI
Swaziland News,12th March 2026
MBABANE: Ronald Lamola, the South African Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Relations has challenged newly appointed United Ambassador to explain himself over “undiplomatic remarks,” Reuters reported on Wednesday.
Conservative activist and writer Leo Brent Bozell arrived in Pretoria as United States President Donald Trump’s Ambassador to South Africa last month but, diplomatic relations between the two countries have deteriorating under President Trump’s second term in Office.
Trump has been criticizing South Africa’s Black Economic Empowerment policies seeking to address the legacy of centuries of racial inequality and its genocide case at the World Court against Israel, a close United States ally, Israel strongly rejects South Africa’s genocide case over its military campaign in Gaza.
But during a press a conference on Tuesday, Bozell waded into controversy by arguing that South African liberation chant “Kill the Boer” amounts to hate speech, despite local courts ruling that it does not.
Bozell said: “I’m sorry, I don’t care what your courts say. It’s hate speech.”
Lamola told a press conference that Bozell’s comments were viewed as undermining the country’s Judiciary and history.