South Africa\u2019s government plans to offer Elon Musk a workaround of local Black ownership laws for his Starlink internet service to operate in the country, aiming to ease tensions with both the billionaire and US President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The offer will come at a last-minute meeting planned for Tuesday night between Musk or his representatives and a delegation of South African officials traveling with President Cyril Ramaphosa, according to three people familiar with the discussions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s meant to defuse the onslaught of criticism by Musk and Trump \u2014 who\u2019ve spread the conspiracy theory that there\u2019s a genocide against White people in Africa\u2019s most-industrialized nation \u2014 before Ramaphosa\u2019s visit to the White House on Wednesday, said the people, who asked not to be identified as they\u2019re not authorized to discuss the matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The alternative to so-called Black Economic Empowerment laws that in some cases require 30% Black ownership is not specific to Starlink and Musk, the people said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It would be applied to all information and communication technology companies, including those from China and the Middle East, the people said.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A so-called Equity Equivalent option would instead involve investments in infrastructure or training, or providing Starlink kits to rural areas in order to help improve Internet access. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The auto industry in 2019 signed up for a similar workaround that involved the largest car manufacturers \u2014 including BMW AG, Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. \u2014 setting up a fund to invest in bring disenfranchised groups into the sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BEE rules were introduced after the end of apartheid, during which Black people were subjugated and excluded from the formal economy by the ruling White minority. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, White people earn on average five times what Black people earn, according to official statistics, and own the vast majority of farmland despite making up 7% of the population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The new rules for ICT companies aren\u2019t about \u201cproviding access to a single company, but rather part of a broader strategy to create an enabling environment for international investment and expand digital connectivity across South Africa,\u201d South Africa\u2019s Department of Communications and Digital Technologies said in a response to a request for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Talks on launching Starlink in South Africa stalled earlier this year after Musk and Trump ramped up public rhetoric against policies such as BEE laws. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Musk, who was born in Pretoria, claimed that he was not allowed to operate his satellite service in South Africa \u201cbecause I\u2019m not Black\u201d and accused the government of having \u201copenly racist ownership laws.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump has also granted refugee status to White minorities in South Africa and criticized a law that gives the government the power to take land for a public purpose. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The act is similar to US eminent domain laws \u2014 though the law in South Africa allows for expropriation without compensation in certain cases such as land that\u2019s been abandoned and state-owned property not in use. For now, no land has been seized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump twice last week repeated the false claim that White people are subject to a genocide in South Africa. A South African court in February ruled that there was no evidence to support the claim, calling the idea \u201cclearly imagined and not real.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
South Africa\u2019s talks with Musk over Starlink won\u2019t necessarily form part of a proposed larger trade deal with the US, though getting Musk on board may assist with more positive engagements between the two countries, said the people familiar with the discussions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Starlink\u2019s technology, which relies on a constellation of low-Earth orbit satellites, would be a potential game-changer for South African users who\u2019ve historically faced expensive or unreliable internet options. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Only 1.7% of rural households have access to the internet, according to a 2023 survey compiled by Statistics South Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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