It is clear to TLU SA that criminals don\u2019t heed the lockdown regulations, and farmers are increasingly the victims of their transgressions.<\/p>\n
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There is an apparent rise in the theft of agricultural products, such as crop and stock theft, while the increase of cable theft in some areas are also frustrating farmers\u2019 production.<\/p>\n
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\u201cWhat is of further concern is the explicit prohibition of farm guards and CPF\u2019s to continue with their regular patrols and crime prevention actions by the minister of police,\u201d says Mr Henk van de Graaf, the chairperson of TLU SA\u2019s Northern region. \u201cWith the police now focussing on other areas, it means that rural areas are currently unprotected. Criminals know this and are abusing the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n
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It is worrying that the police prioritises persecuting people trying to buy alcohol or tobacco products, but does almost nothing to police the criminals threatening food security.<\/p>\n
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Farmers are advised to increase the vigilance on their farms. The power of farm guards lies in the cooperation between roleplayers, effective communication, covering more significant areas than just their own farms, as well as patrolling public roads \u2013 which are often used as escape routes. Criminals welcome these desolate areas.<\/p>\n
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\u201cAfter the immense drought and the paralysing effect of foot and mouth disease on the agricultural sector, farmers cannot afford uncontrolled theft of their products because the minister of police took irrational decisions,\u201d says Mr Van de Graaf.<\/p>\n
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\u201cFarmers are starting to view their farms as disaster areas and will have to implement emergency measures against any suspicious trespassing or movement on their farms,\u201d he warns. \u201cThis will not benefit anyone. We are calling on the provincial government to urgently take this up with the national government to review the existing instructions quickly. We cannot continue like this for another three weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Issued by: \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 TLU SA<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Date:\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 14 April 2020<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Enquiries:\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong>Mr Henk van de Graaf, Chairperson: TLU SA Noord,<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cell.: 076\u00a0563 3800<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It is clear to TLU SA that criminals don\u2019t heed the lockdown regulations, and farmers are increasingly the victims of their transgressions. There is an apparent rise in the theft of agricultural products, such as crop and stock theft, while the increase of cable theft in some areas are also frustrating farmers\u2019 production. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2846,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2848","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news-english"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t