Asylum seeker Brandon Huntley claimed he had been persecuted, abused and repeatedly stabbed. But it was the reason he gave for his ordeal that caused a diplomatic rift today. Huntley is South African – and white.

Canada's decision to grant him refugee status because of his colour prompted accusations of racism from the South African government and a fresh bout of soul searching in a country still scarred by the legacy of apartheid. Some South African whites say they have become a persecuted minority.

Huntley, 31, from Cape Town, made his asylum claim in April last year. Citing violent crime and racism, he told the Canadian immigration and refugee board that he lived in fear of returning to South Africa. He said he had been attacked seven times by black South Africans, including four stabbings, and was called a "white dog" and "settler".

"There's a hatred of what we did to them and it's all about the colour of your skin," Huntley reportedly said.

The immigration board, in Ottawa, found "clear and convincing proof" Huntley was persecuted for being white. William Davis, the board's chairman, ruled he "was a victim because of his race rather than a victim of criminality" and would "stick out like a sore thumb due to his colour in any part of the country".

Davis added that the irrigation sprinkler salesman's evidence showed "a picture of indifference and inability or unwillingness" from the South African government to protect white citizens. He added: "Persecution of white South Africans by African South Africans [is] a common event today in South Africa." Huntley's lawyer, Robert Kaplan, told the Times of South Africa: "The judgment was a direct criticism of the South African government."

There was an angry response from South African's governing African National Congress. "The ANC views the granting by Canada of a refugee status to South African citizen Brandon Huntley on the grounds that Africans would 'persecute' him, as racist," the party said in a statement. "We find the claim by Huntley to have been attacked seven times by Africans due to his skin colour without any police intervention sensational and alarming.Canada's reasoning for granting Huntley refugee status can only serve to perpetuate racism."

Ronnie Mamoepa, South Africa's home affairs spokesman, said the government was "disgusted" by the ruling, describing it as "baseless allegations against our people and our country".

"It would have been courteous for the Canadian government to allow the South African government to respond to the allegations," he added.

Race is seldom far from the public agenda in South Africa. Last month, Julius Malema, the firebrand leader of the ANC's youth league, was criticised after complaining that white people did not attend the welcoming home ceremony for world champion athlete Caster Semenya.

The official unemployment rate for white South Africans is 4.6% percent, compared with 27.9% percent for black South Africans despite an affirmative action programme.

Frans Cronje, deputy director of the South African Institute of Race Relations, said he sympathised with Huntley as an individual but there were myths around white victimhood. "If he has been stabbed so many times, I can understand his state of mind," he said. "The impression of persecution is very real but it doesn't stand up to scrutiny."

He added: "We have found no evidence that white South Africans are targeted because of race. The truth is that black South Africans are far and away more likely to be victims of violent crime. There are problems with the criminal justice system but again blacks are most likely to suffer."

The row provided much sport for the satirical online newspaper Hayibo.com. Its home page said yesterday: "Immigration authorities in England have warned Canada to expect a deluge of young, unemployable, white South Africans to arrive in their country after an immigration and refugee panel, made up of white folk who had never been to Africa, bought into former Cape Town resident Brandon Huntley's paranoia and granted him refugee status. 'There won't be enough pubs and restaurants in Vancouver and Toronto to employ them all,' said an unnamed Home Office source."