South Africa has been through a dark week of farm attacks. And still the wilfully ignorant President, Cyril Ramaphosa, remains silent as if nothing happened.
Following the attack on Mr Donovan Marx last Wednesday, in which he was shot and his ears cut off, Mr Les Brett (67) and his wife, Natasha (68), were attacked on Sunday on a smallholding near Broederstroom.
They were brutally tortured for hours, including with boiling water. The injuries to Mr Brett’s face and arms are so severe that it looks like he was involved in a serious car accident. Surely, the worst torture must have been witnessing Ms Brett being assaulted.
Just a few weeks before, Ms Hannetjie van Zyl (55) was beaten to death while opening the gate to her farm near Ottosdal.
The Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) wants to know whether President Ramaphosa really thinks so little of the country’s farmers that he will continue to deny the reality of these attacks – as he did in a 2018 Bloomberg interview.
The Freedom Front Plus wants him to reflect on this when he sits down to his next meal. The country’s farmers are the ones who, despite difficult circumstances and a harsh climate, ensure that South Africans have the highest quality food on their tables.
What they get in return is a president who turns a blind eye to their plight and refuses to lift a finger when South Africa is kicked out of its AGOA trade agreement with the US – which will make it far more difficult for farmers to survive in the future.<br/>
Moreover, individuals and parties such as the Freedom Front Plus who bring this crisis to the attention of the world are insulted and threatened by dishonest commentators and a callous government. The Freedom Front Plus will not be deterred or intimidated by it.
The party will continue to shine the spotlight on injustices such as farm attacks until the pressure on government becomes so great that it is forced to act – or until a new, honourable government, with the Freedom Front Plus as governing partner, is elected in a few years’ time.<br/>
