Police minister Senzo Mchunu has challenged AfriForum to provide evidence of its claims that the recent statistics for farm murders were inaccurate.
Last week, Mchunu tabled the crime statistics for October to December, which found some serious crimes, including murder and rape, had decreased in all provinces
Mchunu said 12 farm murders had been recorded out of a total of 6,953 reported killings in that period, with one being a farmer.
Five were farm dwellers, four were farm employees, one was a security guard and one was not specified.
AfriForum this week rejected the stats and disputed that only one farmer had been murdered during the period. It said there had been at least 10 farm murders — five farm owners, one farm manager, three employees and one security guard.
These incidents were well-documented and highlighted the continuous threat faced by those living and working in rural areas, it said.
Mchunu said after the release of the crime stats, people from different walks of life had commented positively, which the police appreciated as it encouraged them to combat crime.
He said as AfriForum members were preparing for their trip to the US; they had disputed the quarterly crime statistics, stating five farm owners had been murdered during this period.
“One of the decent things that any organisation worth its salt or any decent individual would do is to put their case on the table so that everybody can appreciate your facts and thoughts but, most importantly, the basis for argument and dispute in this instance,” he said.
He said crime statistics in particular are about the rate of crime in South Africa and that includes murder, which is the loss of life to those who are directly affected, and it is a grave matter that they treat with sanctity and respect — “not for posturing of whatever kind, whether political or otherwise, or for any mileage as government”.
“Any mention of dispute is therefore treated by us in a very serious light.
“We challenge AfriForum, as soon as they land back in South Africa, to provide us with evidence of their mentioned incidents, which they claim are well documented. We appeal to the South African public to desist from assumptions that belong to the past, where farm murders are the same as murders of white farmers,” he said.
Mchunu added that AfriForum's dispute smacked of an “Orwellian approach to this subject”, where there must always be a picture of high numbers of murders of white farmers, as was the case in the past.
“We want to take this opportunity to reiterate that our statistics show that one farmer, who happens to be white, was murdered in the third quarter in South Africa. Anybody who disputes this is welcome to put facts on the table for the purposes of correct records”.
TimesLIVE
Mchunu challenges AfriForum to provide evidence after lobby group disputes crime stats
Image: X/@GovernmentZA
Police minister Senzo Mchunu has challenged AfriForum to provide evidence of its claims that the recent statistics for farm murders were inaccurate.
Last week, Mchunu tabled the crime statistics for October to December, which found some serious crimes, including murder and rape, had decreased in all provinces
Mchunu said 12 farm murders had been recorded out of a total of 6,953 reported killings in that period, with one being a farmer.
Five were farm dwellers, four were farm employees, one was a security guard and one was not specified.
AfriForum this week rejected the stats and disputed that only one farmer had been murdered during the period. It said there had been at least 10 farm murders — five farm owners, one farm manager, three employees and one security guard.
These incidents were well-documented and highlighted the continuous threat faced by those living and working in rural areas, it said.
Mchunu said after the release of the crime stats, people from different walks of life had commented positively, which the police appreciated as it encouraged them to combat crime.
He said as AfriForum members were preparing for their trip to the US; they had disputed the quarterly crime statistics, stating five farm owners had been murdered during this period.
“One of the decent things that any organisation worth its salt or any decent individual would do is to put their case on the table so that everybody can appreciate your facts and thoughts but, most importantly, the basis for argument and dispute in this instance,” he said.
He said crime statistics in particular are about the rate of crime in South Africa and that includes murder, which is the loss of life to those who are directly affected, and it is a grave matter that they treat with sanctity and respect — “not for posturing of whatever kind, whether political or otherwise, or for any mileage as government”.
“Any mention of dispute is therefore treated by us in a very serious light.
“We challenge AfriForum, as soon as they land back in South Africa, to provide us with evidence of their mentioned incidents, which they claim are well documented. We appeal to the South African public to desist from assumptions that belong to the past, where farm murders are the same as murders of white farmers,” he said.
Mchunu added that AfriForum's dispute smacked of an “Orwellian approach to this subject”, where there must always be a picture of high numbers of murders of white farmers, as was the case in the past.
“We want to take this opportunity to reiterate that our statistics show that one farmer, who happens to be white, was murdered in the third quarter in South Africa. Anybody who disputes this is welcome to put facts on the table for the purposes of correct records”.
TimesLIVE
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