In a recent interview on US broadcaster Newsmax, Melany Viljoen declared: “Trump is right about everything.”
“I'm from South Africa where there are race laws against white people and where white people are getting killed and the news doesn't want to write about it. I am testament to tell you that Trump was right about everything, including South Africa, including the rest of the world,” the former Real Housewives of Pretoria star said.
Earlier this year President Cyril Ramaphosa met US President Donald Trump at the White House in an attempt to reset strained relations which have been overshadowed by disputes about South Africa’s land reform policies.
In January Ramaphosa signed the Expropriation Bill, replacing apartheid-era legislation from 1975. The new law allows government to seize land for public purposes, such as infrastructure projects, conservation or land reform.
While it sets out rules for fair compensation, it also permits seizure without compensation in limited circumstances.
Trump has denounced the law, calling it “persecution” of South Africa’s white minority. Some Afrikaner groups and the DA have raised concern that it could trigger land seizures and depress property values.
Viljoen has also tied her own experiences to her narrative of discrimination. In an interview with IOL, she said: “I lost my biggest contract because I'm not black. With the BEE laws and all their anti-white laws kicking into South Africa, it gives black people in South Africa the feeling that they have more power and they can kill who they want and take what they want.”
In the same interview her husband Peet Viljoen said: “There is no doubt in my mind that I am a racist and hate South African black people.”
Asked if she agreed, Melany said: “We hate corrupt black people — that’s what we said.”
The couple, who previously ran Tammy Taylor Nails in South Africa, said they have faced legal challenges in the US, including a court order to reimburse the real Tammy Taylor for trademark infringement and they have since sold their businesses and moved abroad.
Viljoen has also weighed in on US politics, praising Trump’s recently announced plan to sign an executive order requiring voter ID for all US elections — a move which has caused a lot of controversy.
“It's going to be Trump so that's my opinion about the proper voter ID, it's right. Why would you want to vote if you don't have an ID?”
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