AfriForum today held a wreath-laying ceremony in Middelburg (Mpumalanga) where Sue Howarth died on 21 February 2017. Howarth is the 15th person and one of the most recent victims who died this month as a result of a farm attack in South Africa.
AfriForum personnel, members of the Transvaal Agricultural Union of South Africa (TAU SA) and many community members attended the ceremony.
AfriForum succeeded in its attempt to have farm murders declared a priority crime by the South African Police Service (SAPS), but still it isn’t receiving the necessary attention by Government.
“People are being tortured and murdered and we want to know when Government will start prioritising these violent crimes,” says Ian Cameron, Head of Community Safety at AfriForum.
According to Hillel Coetzer, AfriForum’s spokesperson, the wreath-laying ceremony also serves as commemoration for those people who were victims of farm murders over the past two months. It also places the spotlight on Government’s failure to actively intercede.