Police Minister Senzo Mchunu. File Photo: GCIS
Image: GCIS
The Minister of Police Senzo Mchunu has challenged AfriForum to produce evidence supporting their claim that the recent national crime statistics were not accurate concerning white farm murders.
Mchunu released the third quarter crime statistics for 2024/2025 on February 21 and revealed a significant reduction in crime.
However, the lobby group questioned the accuracy of the crime statistics due to the South African Police Services' (SAPS) "flawed" record keeping.
Jacques Broodryk, AfriForum’s Chief Spokesperson for Community Safety, stated that the organisation's Neighbourhood and Farm Watches, which address various crimes at the grassroots level, have not observed any significant changes in crime patterns during this period.
In response to the lobby group, Mchunu emphasised that one of the most responsible actions any organisation can take is to present factual evidence to support their position.
"One of the comments came from Afriforum as they were preparing for their trip to America; they make a claim that they are disputing the released quarterly crime statistics, stating that a total of five farm owners had been murdered during this period.
"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," said Mchunu.
Mchunu urged the public to desist from assumptions that belong to the past, and added that the lobby group's approach always paints a distorted picture of high numbers in murders of white farmers.
"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," he said.
Meanwhile, AfriForum's CEO, Kallie Kriel, has defended the group's decision to visit the Donald Trump administration in the United States.
Kriel said their visit at the White House stemmed from frustrations with the South African government's refusal to address their concerns.
He blamed President Cyril Ramaphosa and African National Congress (ANC) leaders for causing division through the implementation of the Bela Act and Land expropriation without compensation.
sinenhlanhla.masilela@iol.co.za
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