South African-born billionaire Elon Musk has reignited national debate after claiming that post-apartheid South Africa has more “anti-white” laws than the apartheid government had anti-Black legislation.
Musk made the statement on social media while sharing data from the South African Institute of Race Relations (IRR), which tracks race-based laws. He criticised affirmative action and empowerment policies, describing race-based legislation as “deeply wrong.”
However, the claim has been widely disputed by legal experts and commentators who argue that the comparison is misleading, pointing out that apartheid laws enforced systemic racial oppression, while current policies such as B-BBEE and the Employment Equity Act are constitutionally intended to address historical inequality and economic exclusion.
