AfriForum accuses ministers and SAPS of complicity after the occurrence of more farm murders

The civil rights organisation AfriForum once again made an appeal to the Minister of Police, Nkosinathi Nhleko, to prioritise farm murders.

This follows after an elderly couple and a friend of them were attacked this weekend on their game farm close to Thabazimbi. Bruno Res (73) was shot in the arm and his wife Petru (60) was shot in the head. The couple was taken by surprise by five men when Petru and her friend arrived at the farm on Friday evening. After the attack, all three the victims were locked inside a walk-in safe vault. Petru died on the scene as a result of her injuries.

Since the beginning of 2015, 157 farm attacks occurred while 44 murders were committed during these attacks.

Ernst Roets, Deputy CEO of AfriForum, described farm murders as a national crisis and referred to the failure of the Department of Police to prioritise this crime, as a form of complicity. Roets said that there are essentially four reasons why the prioritisation of farm murders must be considered as critical.

“In the first place, the calculations of independent research institutions indicate that the possibility for a farmer to be murdered, is more than double that of a police official. Secondly, these murders are often committed with exceptional levels of brutality. Thirdly, farmers have a vital role to play in society, especially with regards to job creation and food security. In the fourth place, we know that farmers live in isolated places, far from their neighbours and far from the nearest police station.”

“Despite this, the Minister, the Department of Police and the South African Police Service (SAPS) generally refuse to fight these crimes with the necessary urgency,” added Roets.

Roets also made a plea to the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Senzeni Zokwana, to intervene by taking drastic action. This follows after Zokwana expressed his concern at an agricultural gathering in the Western Cape last week with regards to the wave of crime that broke out on farms.

“The Minister regularly says that farmers and institutions such as AfriForum and Government must come together to find solutions for this crisis. The time for talk is gone. AfriForum already drives its own campaign on local and international level. As far as Government is concerned, the ball is now in the Minister’s hands to decide how role-players must work together.”

Roets concluded by mentioning that AfriForum will undertake further actions in this coming week against the failure of the Department and the SAPS.