THEY WAIT AT THE GATE
The penny appears to have finally dropped in South Africa with regard to the shameful legacy of farm murders. Books are appearing with regularity, human rights and other groups are calling for hearings and submissions and a film is now being made, due for release next year.
Farm attacks have been with us for years. In a recent submission to a national hearing of the SA Human Rights Commission , TAU SA’s Chris van Zyl, a former SADF Major General, states that violent crimes against farm dwellers is a relatively recent phenomenon. “Prior to 1986, very little recorded evidence of noteworthy occurrences of violent crimes on farms and agricultural holdings existed.”
Historically, farm attacks coincided with the ANC’s liberation struggle and its penetration into the heart and soul of South Africa, aided by foreign organisations, governments and the United Nations. The South African revolution followed the same pattern as the so-called liberation wars throughout Southern Africa – hallmarked by violence, intimidation and terror, particularly against the rural communities, both black and white. This didn’t end with the transfer of power. Anti-white farm terror continued in Zimbabwe until there were only a few farmers left, while farmers in Mozambique and Angola simply fled back to Portugal. (These countries are now basket cases and have to import food.)
Flying the ersatz flag of democracy, the African National Congress and its communist allies ensured that power would be attained at the barrel of a gun and with the matches of the necklace. This bogus democracy is now controlled from ANC’s headquarters at Luthuli House in Johannesburg. Parliament is but a shallow show. Once power was transferred, however, the violence didn’t stop. Indeed, after the release of Nelson Mandela in early 1990, unrest and killings, especially of policemen and their families, rocketed.
In line with the ANC’s liberation modus operandi, farm attacks in South Africa have been hallmarked by brutality and savagery. TAU SA has highlighted this peculiarity many times. “They wait at the gate” is symptomatic of why these attacks are far more than just collateral behavior to a robbery. ‘the miscreants wait for the farmer to come home! On many occasions it appears the robbery is of secondary importance – attacking the farmer with venom and vengeance indicates a deep, visceral racial hatred. Farmers and particularly Afrikaans farmers have always been a target. They were seen as part of the defence apparatus of South Africa: the ANC’s Radio Freedom declared this fact in the mid eighties.
Political commentator James Myburgh said in 2011 that “farmers are not simply being targeted for their involvement in SADF structures but for racial and ideological reasons as well”. On occasion, those under attack have reported that their attackers have shouted at them in racial terms such as “white bitch” and “white pig” and ”we’re running the country now and there’s nothing you can do about it”.
FIGURES
Farm attack figures are readily available for South Africa to scrutinise. According to TAU SA’s statistics, a total of 1734 farm murders and 3341 attacks occurred from January 1990 to 15 September 2014. (It is significant that Nelson Mandela was released in January 1990).
According to Dr. Johan Burger of the Institute for Security Studies, the national murder average is 31.1 murders per 100 000 people, while the farm average is 132,8 per 100 000.
TAU SA believes farm attacks could be a strategy to drive farmers off their land. (During the World Cup in 2010, not one farm murder occurred.) Other crimes committed on farms are poorly reported and are even less acted upon, but they cause serious disruption and trauma: arson, malicious damage to property, trespassing and illegal hunting are common. Stock theft is endemic.
This terror strategy certainly worked in Zimbabwe. It was government’s aim to use violence to drive farmers off their land.
PLANS
Despite numerous meetings, indabas, the formation of new organisations and Five Point Plan programmes to tackle farm violence, not much has improved. Indeed, the State President Jacob Zuma has publicly declared that his followers should take up machine guns. He even called on his cabinet to do so! Farmers thus cannot expect much help from the state. Recently a rap group called Dookoom reportedly created a song containing words such as ”brand die plaas and f… die baas!”. (Burn the farm and to hell with the boss!) Legal action against the group has been threatened by certain organisations including TAU SA but the words are out there! CD’s and a video are being sold! One of the songs is “Shoot the Boer”. A British-born man is purportedly leader of this group and he declares that farmers handle their workers “worse than animals”. The group admits setting fire to “certain farms” and says its songs and videos “make a point against social injustice”. If you are offended by the video, says the group, “then that is your problem”.
So much for respect (and fear) of the law in South Africa! Why doesn’t the government object? Frankly it couldn’t care less, despite its meetings with farmer groups where talk of “taking hands into the future” is bandied about.
The problem is that whites react to this sort of racial hatred and incitement with court action, while the inciters couldn’t care less about the courts. They are provocative yet are not taken to task by anyone. Where in the world are farmers so despised and insulted as here in South Africa? Where in the world is such an important group given such short shrift? How important is this sector to South Africa’s survival?
COMMERCIAL FARMING
Government estimates suggest that three quarters of restituted farmland is unproductive, despite state expenditure of R70 bn since 1995. More than 400 000 farm labourer jobs have been lost. (This three quarter figure is disputed. The government has yet to produce one transferred farm which pays tax on a profit where the farm has not been ”managed” or “mentored” or helped by someone other than the recipients.)
At the same time, the number of commercial farmers has dropped from 120 000 in 1994 to a current figure of 36 000.
The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has 664 vacancies. Minister Senzeni Zokwana told parliament recently that 204 posts are at top and senior management level. One position has remained vacant for more than seven years, and 63 senior positions have been vacant for more than two years. Director general, deputy director general and chief engineer posts are among those that are unfilled. This is the result of the government’s employment equity policy. Posts are advertised and are not applied for by whites. They remain unfilled. Racial resentment trumps getting the job done and the country’s food security. (Such madness only seems apparent in South Africa!)
Instead of making the ministry functional so that commercial and emerging farming sectors can get on with the job of producing food, Gugile Nkwinti, minister of agricultural development and land reform tells farmers that the population is growing so they- the productive farmers – must hand over up to 50% of their farms to their workers! This is absolute insanity and it is surprising that any farmers attend meetings to talk to this minister! Why go anywhere to discuss plan your own suicide?
SA’s deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa told a “social cohesion” summit in Gauteng recently that Gauteng had the largest number of immigrants (meaning illegal aliens) and that the province should lead the country into “combating xenophobia”! This is the attitude of the country’s second in charge! Let the aliens in, don’t object to them and the future will look after itself!
South Africa has the highest per capita soil loss in the world, losing an estimated 400 million tons of soil each year, according to the non-profit African Conservative Trust (ACT). (Business Day 23 September 2014). “A lack of water and soil erosion, deforestation and desertification are causal factors for food insecurity and poverty, resulting in low-income urbanization. Coupled with climate change and the destruction of natural habitats and biodiversity in SA, this is a recipe for disaster for millions of people living in poverty” says ACT. “Poor agricultural practices have resulted in extreme losses of top soil and the creation of huge dongas, while vast tracts of forests are being felled for firewood”.
Any normal observer must think the government’s policies towards the only people who can provide food for 53 million South Africans are simple lunacy. And the policies are! But the government is not listening and it has the power. The wealthy and loquacious Mr. Ramaphosa talks of “united action” within the country but his government hasn’t the faintest idea of how to do anything but destroy. Who will stop them on this path to devastation?
