Inside the growing fight over Elon Musk’s Starlink ambitions in South Africa
Security risks and legal hurdles: Starlink faces fierce opposition in SA.
Image: Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto/AFP
The Presidency has rejected claims by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk that South Africa has failed to amend its laws to allow his satellite internet service, Starlink, to operate in the country, accusing him of misrepresenting the regulatory position.
Presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya was responding to public comments by Musk suggesting that the country was deliberately blocking Starlink by refusing to change legislation.
Magwenya said government would not be pressured into altering its legal framework to accommodate a single company, adding that South Africa's laws apply equally to domestic and foreign firms seeking to do business in the country.
"He thinks he can bully us into submission with his deliberate dishonesty. We will not be bullied!"
The criticism of Musk's approach has also been echoed by Rise Mzansi leader Songezo Zibi, who warned of broader security implications.
"Elon Musk is a huge security risk (even for the US) in the broadest sense of the word. Example: He's periodically threatened to cut access to Starlink on which the Ukraine military relies," Zibi said, highlighting Musk's unpredictable decision-making.
He added: "We can't have that Starlink thing here."
The debate over Starlink's role in South Africa has also drawn comment from Khusela Diko, chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies, who welcomed connectivity initiatives but underscored the need to respect local legislation.
"Starlink has made public pronouncements (again outside due process) that they would connect 5,000 schools. This doesn't move the needle an inch when compared to the more than 22,000 schools our mobile network operators who already comply with our transformative laws have committed to and are busy delivering on," she said.
Diko stressed the importance of national development priorities: "Starlink must not undermine our legislation and further must meet the obligations that everyone else in the sector is already delivering on. We need more connectivity but not at cost to our national development objectives and sovereignty."
Hermann Pretorius, head of strategic communications for the Institute of Race Relations (IRR), weighed in on the matter, accusing the African National Congress (ANC) of prioritising political insiders over educational empowerment:
"The ANC would rather have a few cadres and cronies be further enriched through sweetheart BEE deals than tens of thousands of rural kids be empowered," Pretorius said.
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