The new U.S. Ambassador to South Africa L. Brent Bozell III was summoned by the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) on March 11, after making remarks about a controversial liberation-era chant that DIRCO deemed a breach of diplomatic protocol. Bozell, who was appointed by the Trump administration on Dec. 18, 2025, has apparently apologized.
According to coverage in News24, Ambassador Bozell told a BizNews gathering in Hermanus, South Africa, that, “We may not get clarity on the Kill the Boer chant that we believe is hate speech. I am sorry, I don’t care what your courts say, it’s hate speech.” The chant dates from the anti-apartheid era and is widely understood as a political expression rather than a literal call to violence, though it remains contentious. In March 2025, South Africa’s Constitutional Court ruled that the chant was not hate speech.
DIRCO Minister Ronald Lamola confirmed that Bozell had been formally démarched, and director-general Zane Dangor indicated he had apologized. Notably, Lamola also referenced Bozell’s visits to apartheid-era historical sites, including the Apartheid Museum and District Six, saying the ambassador had acknowledged that “given our history, South Africa needs redress and he’s willing to work with us constructively in this regard.”
