Sandton Drive renaming harmful to SA-US relations, says DA

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The Democratic Alliance (DA) has welcomed the announcement that the Presidency will be intervening on the issue of renaming Sandton Drive in Johannesburg to Palestinian activist Leila Khaled.

Several political parties and civil society organisations condemned the proposal by the African National Congress (ANC) in Johannesburg saying it is divisive and provocative. Especially because the United State Consulate is on Sandton Drive. The move has been seen as an attempt to spite the US.

DA WELCOMES PRESIDENT’S INTERVENTION IN SANDTON DRIVE RENAMING

The South African previously reported that Sandton Drive renaming to Leila Khaled Drive was first proposed in 2018. The move was posited on a memorandum of co-operation with the Palestinian city of Ramallah. Moreover, it was hailed as an expression of the city’s commitment to diplomatic relations with the people of Palestine. Johannesburg also donated a statue of Nelson Mandela to Ramallah back in 2016.

Leila Khaled is a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, an internationally designated terrorist organisation. She is known as the poster girl of Palestinian militancy for her role in hijacking TWA flight 840 from Rome to Tel Aviv in 1969, as well as many other terrorist activities, according to The Jewish Report.

The DA said the Presidency is correct in indicating that this issue is harmful to SA – US relations and is an unnecessary provocation at this time.

“The USA is one of our largest trade and investment partners, and the renaming issue does not help our country’s efforts to stabilise relations. The DA stands ready to support the closure of this embarrassing chapter for the City of Johannesburg,” DA spokesperson on International Relations and Cooperation, Emma Louise Powell said.

South Africa has always supported Palestine in the ongoing decades-long genocide on the Gaza strip. In 2024, the South African government requested that South Africa make an urgent appeal to the World Court to intervene after Israel launched attacks on Rafah in southern Gaza.

‘DIPLOMATICALLY SENSITIVE’

The President’s intervention comes just days after South Africa’s Ambassador to the US Ebrahim Rasool was declared persona non grata over comments he made about the US and its President Donald Trump.

Rasool’s privileges and immunities as SA’s Ambassador to the US ceased on Monday, 17 March, and he is expected to land in Cape Town on Sunday, 23 March.

South Africa’s expelled Ambassador to the USA, Ebrahim Rasool. Image: AFP

During a media briefing earlier this week Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the situation was diplomatically sensitive and the president wants to avoid fanning the flames.

“We recognise the diplomatic sensitivities in renaming Sandton Drive, particularly with the United States of America. The purpose of the talks with the City of Johannesburg is to agree to a process for the national executive to manage the diplomatic tensions with the US without enflaming the situation,” Magwenya said.