SA unperturbed by US visa policies affecting Zimbabwe

The South African government appears unmoved by the recent visa ban imposed by the US embassy in Harare, Zimbabwe, even as US President Donald Trump continues to disrupt global diplomacy with tariff increases and immigration policies seven months into his second term.

The US has suspended all routine immigrant and non-immigrant visa services to Zimbabwe due to concerns about misuse and overstays. However, the issuance of other visa types remains unaffected.

Although South Africa was exempt from new Trump visa restrictions on SADC countries, a new policy has been implemented for Malawi and Zambia. 

Citizens of these nations are now required to pay a bond of $5,000 (R88,656) to $15,000 (R265,967) to travel to the United States.

Additionally, the citizens are required to use one of three airports-Boston's Logan International, New York's JFK International, or Dulles International near Washington D.C.-for both arrival and departure.

When asked whether South African citizens should be worried, Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) spokesperson Chrispin Phiri gave a brief response: "We do not provide commentary on other countries' visa regimes, and this is our general position, it's not specific to the US."

A senior government official, however, downplayed the likelihood of South Africans being affected by the US visa restrictions.

 "Remember Trump is only in our case because of the International Court of Justice case against Israel and our involvement in BRICS. Nothing more and nothing less," the official said. 

"South Africans visiting the US are mostly professionals who either go for business or a holiday. We seldom have citizens wanting to immigrate to the US...we should have nothing to worry about," he said.

The US embassy explained that the reasons for the restrictions was because the administration was working to prevent visa overstay and misuse as part of national security. 

"The Trump administration is protecting our nation and citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through our visa process," the embassy said.

"We are always working to prevent visa overstay and misuse."

In June, the US imposed travel bans on citizens from 12 countries, with seven of them located in Africa. Additionally, heightened restrictions were applied to seven other nations, three of which are African.

The US has issued a demand to 36 countries, predominantly in Africa, to enhance their traveler vetting procedures. Failure to comply could result in a ban on their citizens visiting the US.

International Relations analyst Rejoice Ngwenya said it was unfortunate that the US had an obsession with immigration issues.

"All democratic countries must encourage international country movements. However it is incumbent upon citizens that they don't abuse regulations. But one thing to acknowledge in terms of implementation of immigration laws globally is not to interfere and dissuade inter country movements of students because knowledge sharing and education is a universal right," Ngwenya said.

International Relations expert Dr Noluthando Phungula said Trump continues to shake global diplomacy as he feels threatened, especially by BRICS countries.

"As a head of state and a representative of the unipolar super power bloc, Trump was threatened especially by BRICS, which South Africa is a part of. 

"The BRICS expansion and growth speaks to a clearer call from the Global South towards multilateralism. This inadvertently challenges Western dominance and calls for a reformation of international power structures. This is certainly an uncomfortable reality for Trump. 

"While the formation may not be directly competing with the US, it directly challenges the unipolar global power dynamic, in which the United States is regarded as the lead superpower. The BRICS are a representation of a significant and needed transition towards a multipolar power setting, in which various countries lead global cooperation efforts.