Caged woman’s dad says he made ‘sure she sat comfortably in cage’

These are the words of Jaan Steenkamp, the father of the woman who was photographed sitting in a cage on the back of a bakkie in the Eastern Cape.

Speaking to the Daily Dispatch, Jaan said he wanted the incident to blow over after a photograph of his daughter Linda went viral and she made headlines across the country in what many termed a racist incident.

He says he arranged the lift for her so she could get a check-up, as she is four months pregnant.

“I even went as far as making sure she was sitting comfortably at the back in that cage.”

READ THIS: Zille mauled on Twitter over ‘caged woman on bakkie’ tweets 

Her family and boyfriend have spoken out, though, offering a different view to that of the father. Bonga Kondile, Linda’s boyfriend, said it had been a health hazard and not right for his partner to have sat in a sheep pen.

“Anything could have happened to my girlfriend because it was a health hazard, especially for someone who is pregnant … to be seated at the back inside a cage while there was space in front. That incident was so wrong and it is understandable that those who are not accustomed to the culture here on the farms would call for steps to be taken against the vehicle’s owner,” said Kondile.

“Claiming that a pregnant woman chose to lock herself inside a cage in the back of a car is not good enough. How do you allow that to happen when it makes sense not to give someone a lift if the front seat is off-limits?”

READ MORE: Racism, and racism alone, landed that woman in a cage on a bakkie 

Linda said she climbed into the cage of her own free will as it is not the norm for farm labourers and their family to sit in the front seat. Johan Erasmus, the farmer who drove her to the city, said he saw nothing wrong with Linda getting into the cage.

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