'Irresponsible, reprehensible, and racist': Here's how the world reacted to Trump's 'shithole' comments by Michal Kranz on Jan 14, 2018, 10:40 AM Advertisement
 President Donald Trump ignited a firestorm on Thursday when it was reported that he had called Haiti, El Salvador, and African nations "shithole countries" at a bipartisan meeting on immigration, and said the US needed more immigrants from countries like Norway. The comments drew immediate and intense backlash from leaders around the globe. The White House initially issued statements which did not directly deny that Trump had made the defamatory comments. Trump also tweeted on Friday morning that he did not use the "language" that had been reported. "The language used by me at the DACA meeting was tough, but this was not the language used. What was really tough was the outlandish proposal made - a big setback for DACA!" Trump wrote. Regardless of his apparent denial, the international condemnations have continued to roll in. Here's how world leaders have reacted to Trump's comments: SEE ALSO: 'Breaking china all over the place': European diplomats say Trump's rhetoric at an EU dinner was 'unlike anything they've ever heard' UN Human Rights Commissioner Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein's spokesman, Rupert Colville, did not mince words: "There is no other word one can use but racist."  "You cannot dismiss entire countries and continents as 'shitholes', whose entire populations, who are not white, are therefore not welcome," Colville added. "The future of the Dreamers should not be used as a bargaining chip to negotiate the most severe and restrictive immigration and security measures possible. These are human beings, not commodities." Source: Sky News
"We view the utterances by the current American President as highly irresponsible, reprehensible, and racist," the Ministry of International Affairs of Botswana said in a statement.  "The Botswana Government has also enquired from the US Government through the Ambassador, to clarify if Botswana is regarded as a 'shithole' country given that there are Botswana nationals residing in the US, and also that some of Botswana may wish to visit the US," the statement continued. "Botswana has accepted US citizens within her borders over the years and continues to host US guests and senior government officials, including a Congressional delegation that will come to Botswana at the end of this month; that is why we view the utterances by the current American President as highly irresponsible, reprehensible, and racist.” Source: Twitter
The African Union, which represents nearly all of Africa, issued a sharp rebuke of its own: "The African Union Mission condemns the comments in the strongest terms and demands a retraction of the comments as well as an apology."  The statment built upon a spokeswoman's comments from earlier in the day. "Given the historical reality of how many Africans arrived in the United States as slaves, this statement flies in the face of all accepted behavior and practice," African Union spokeswoman Ebba Kalondo said. "This is particularly surprising as the United States of America remains a global example of how migration gave birth to a nation built on strong values of diversity and opportunity." Source: CBS News
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