Starlink owner, Elon Musk has made rounds on social media platform X to lodge a complaint that the satellite internet service has been denied regulatory approval in South Africa because he’s not black.
Musk, in an X post, cited that “Starlink is not allowed to operate in South Africa, because I’m not black’. The post has immediately drawn reactions from X users where Clayson Monyela, South Africa’s head of public diplomacy, branded it as “not true” and “nothing to do with your skin colour”.
Musk’s post was in response to another post quoting South African businessman and right-wing political campaigner Rob Hersov where he said that South Africa was “on the edge of a socialist abyss”.
Monyela has then hit back at Musk in a post on X where he noted that Starlink is welcomed in the country provided it abides by local laws.
“Starlink is welcome to operate in South Africa provided there’s compliance with local laws. This is a global international trade and investment principle. There are over 600 US companies investing and operating in South Africa, all complying and thriving. Microsoft just announced additional investments yesterday,” he said.
While making the statement, Monyela was referring to the announcement by Microsoft president and vice chairman Brad Smith in Johannesburg on Thursday that the US software giant plans to invest $296.81 million over the next three years in building advanced artificial intelligence data centres in the country.
Musk’s post drew several reactions as most X users blamed him for playing the victim card while reminding him that Starlink wasn’t banned due to his colour but for his failure to adhere to the regulatory rules.
A user said, “Elon Musk may be the biggest liar in mankind’s history. Starlink is barred from operating in SA due to your unwillingness to follow rules, which you see as made by black people and thus beneath you”. In contrast, another user supported Musk insisting that “Truth hits hard. South Africa willing to keep their people disconnected just to spite someone who doesn’t check their racial quota box. Politics over progress. Always been that way.”
Notably, it was cited that Grok, the AI tool built into X, said Musk’s claim is inaccurate. “Elon Musk’s claim about Starlink not operating in South Africa due to his race is inaccurate. The restriction stems from South African licensing laws requiring 30% ownership by historically disadvantaged groups, not Musk’s race.”
Also Read: Starlink regulatory talks in South Africa stalls as Elon Musk and Donald Trump raise inquiry.
Starlink regulatory issues
Despite its availability in many other countries in Southern Africa, Starlink has encountered challenges launching in South Africa. However, the satellite provider claimed that it had set up a legal entity in South Africa for its launch.
Meanwhile, It was reported in April that Starlink is not going to work in South Africa because the company didn’t want to share ownership with locals as per the government’s requirements.
Starlink has refused to comply with the country’s BEE (Black Economic Empowerment) – 30 per cent ownership to local historically disadvantaged people.
The South African BEE rule mandates that companies must allocate 30 per cent of their shareholding to historically disadvantaged groups. The legislation was introduced by the government after the end of apartheid in 1994 to give South Africa’s Black majority a greater stake in the economy from which they were excluded during White-minority rule.
Last October, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa held talks with Starlink founder, Elon Musk over potential investments. “I have had discussions with him and have said, Elon, you have become so successful and you’re investing in a variety of countries, I want you to come home and invest here. He and I are going to have a further discussion,” he said.
A few weeks later, the communications minister Solly Malatsi during that period said he would like to see equity equivalence programmes be made an option to encourage foreign investment in South Africa’s ICT sector.
The communications regulator announced that it is working on a regulatory and licensing framework for satellite internet providers to play as operators. However, Starlink didn’t appear at February’s public hearing which addressed the impending license requirement issues that have delayed the launch of Starlink in the country.
While considerations were being weighted, the discussion recently stumbled after Elon Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump sought public backing against laws aimed at redressing the racial inequality wrought by apartheid.
The government has since stood on grounds not to back down at the expense of the nation’s constitution and values amidst its eagerness to attract as much foreign investment as possible.
“If a leading business figure like Elon Musk harbours the kind of unprogressive, racist views that we’ve witnessed and the peddling of lies that we’ve been confronted with, then we’re not going to pursue having his investments,” Presidency spokesman Vincent Magwenya said.
In its effort to address the BEE rule, the satellite internet company had previously suggested setting aside an equity equivalent to the ownership program to assist South Africans. Starlink offered to install 8,000 satellite kits in rural schools across the country as part of an equity equivalent.
With Elon Musk’s latest action, the launch of Starlink in South Africa is almost at a total halt. Starlink is revolutionizing internet access across Africa, already active in 19 countries with plans to expand further.
Technext Newsletter
Get the best of Africa’s daily tech to your inbox – first thing every morning.
Join the community now!
