The comments are a retreat from a statement she made on Friday that suggested she had been in talks with Mr Dutton to ascertain "if any changes are needed to our existing offshore humanitarian visa program”. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video She confirmed the South African government ordered Adam McCarthy, the Australian high commissioner in Pretoria, to explain comments by Mr Dutton that a "civilised country" needed to give "special attention" to farmers who have been targeted by the government's push to redistribute white-owned land to black South Africans. Up to 70 per cent of the country's agricultural land is owned by the minority of White Afrikaners, according to the South African government. Based on title deeds only 8 per cent of farmland is owned by black farmers. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. Credit:Simon Dawson

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he would not allow the policy to turn into a land-grab. “We cannot have a situation of anarchy when we have proper constitutional means through which we can work to give land to our people," he said. The South African Foreign Ministry demanded a full retraction from Mr Dutton on Friday. “The government is offended by the statements which have been attributed to the Australian Home Affairs Minister," it said in a statement. Loading

Ms Bishop said she had raised concerns about the land reforms and was continuing to monitor the rate of crime in South Africa. "There has been a dramatic increase in recent years. Last year there were about 19,000 murders in South Africa, and that's a very high number for a country of that size," she told the ABC Insiders program. The Institute for Security Studies, a respected South African crime statistics think-tank, found last year that there was no evidence to support the perception that white farmers had been targeted by violence more than any other citizens. Ms Bishop said she would not generalise on the quality of South African migrants over any other ethnic group. "They make a great contribution to life in Australia, as do so many immigrants from all around the world. They make an incredible contribution to the peace, stability and prosperity of our nation."

She urged anyone who felt persecuted, regardless of their background, to lodge an application for Australia's humanitarian visa program where it would "be considered on its merits". Loading Ms Bishop also took aim at Russia, stating she would support Britain's calls to send in weapons inspectors after a former Russian spy was poisoned in Britain by a chemical nerve agent. "This is a situation that cannot be allowed to continue," she said. "One cannot have a permanent member of the UN Security Council, or indeed any country anywhere, any time, deploying illegal chemical weapons. Clearly Britain is within its rights to take action, as it has done with expelling [23 Russian] diplomats."