Couple killed as thousands march against farm murders

On the same day that thousands of people marched around the country to protest against farm murders, a husband and wife were shot and killed during a farm attack in the Normandien area.

According to the Newcastle Advertiser, Glen and Vida Rafferty returned home to their farm at around 10.30pm on Saturday evening, where they were overpowered and killed by a group of attackers at the entrance to the property. It is believed the Rafferty’s dog was also shot.

The attackers fled the farm in the couple’s vehicle which was abandoned on the N11 between Newcastle and Ladysmith.

Forensic teams were on scene taking fingerprints and collecting data from the vehicle in hopes that the attackers can be traced.

Farm murders

On Saturday morning, thousand of bikers marched to the Union Buildings in Pretoria to highlight farm murders in the country.

The protest was organised by the Stop Farm Murders movement along with various other organisations was reportedly attended by around 9,000 to 15,000 bikers.

#BikersAgainstFarmMurders pic.twitter.com/9yFhl4Cuce

— Lize Bright (@LizeBright) August 29, 2020

Organiser Tommie Blignaut said earlier in the week that the movement’s aim was to get the attention of the government and strengthen the laws around farm murders.

Hundreds of bikers also participated in Nelson Mandela Bay in the Eastern Cape and in Kimberely in the Northern Cape.

Call for action

In a statement on the Rafferty murders on Sunday, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said it would be writing directly to KwaZulu-Natal Premier, Sihle Zikalala, about recommendations and resolutions on the issues affecting the safety of farmers, farm workers and rural communities.

The party added that the province’s Agriculture and Rural Development portfolio committee was suppose to have met this past week to discuss the recommendations, but the meeting was postponed.

The DA’s statement included a list of measures which was suppose to be part of the portfolio committee’s discussion:

• Declaring farm attacks/murders hate crimes or priority crimes due to their brutal nature;
• Establishing an inter-ministerial task team to report the Premier on rural safety;
• Calling a rural safety summit where experts can advise government on practical steps to make rural areas safer;
• Directly subsidising farm patrols, farm watches and private security initiatives; and
• Making better use of technology such as licence plate recognition, drones and CCTV in the fight against crime.

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