A white South African man won asylum in Canada after a one-man immigration board ruled that his "fear of persecution by African South Africans" was justified, reports the Times of London. Brandon Huntley fled to Canada in April and told authorities he was attacked seven times by blacks calling him a "white dog" and "settler." The ruling has infuriated the South African government, which calls it racist.
South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world, but blacks and other races are just as much victims as whites. Canada's contention that the South African government is unable or unwilling to protect Huntley—and its strange claim that a white man would "stick out like a sore thumb in any part of the country"—led to sharp denunciations by the ruling African National Congress. "Canada's reasoning can only serve to perpetuate racism," a party official said.
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