Photo: Pixabay
Photo: Pixabay
AfriForum have conducted their own independent research into the scourge of farm murders in South Africa. The lobby group, who have led several campaigns against the violence in rural communities, confirmed that the number of killings in confirmed farm attacks has increased to 57 in the last calendar year.
However, this year-on-year rise is smaller than the one recorded in 2018. This particular silver lining is attached to a very ominous cloud, though. About 5.7% of all victims are murdered during these attacks, with Gauteng and Free State proving to be the most dangerous regions for our farmers.
Here are the six most important facts from their research:
Unfortunately, incidents of rape have become more common during these farm murders and attacks. Ian Cameron is AfriForum’s head of community safety. He has slammed the authorities for failing to protect the women of South Africa, explaining why farmers now feel an increasing need to learn self-defence.
“AfriForum’s data shows that rural communities are fighting back and becoming more resilient. Clearly, we cannot rely on government to put measures in place to protect rural communities. The huge increase in farm attacks in 2019 shows that the police do not have the capacity or knowledge to stop violent crime on farms.”
“This means that in a violent farm attack you will probably be dependent on yourself. AfriForum offers safety training to its members to make them more resilient. If you can defend your family, can you defend your neighbours; when neighbors defend each other, they defend their community.”
Ian Cameron