Members of the far-Right AWB threatened vengeance after he was beaten to death in a dispute with two farm workers over unpaid wages. Police said he was attacked to the head with a machete and a club in his bed at his farm outside Ventersdorp, North West province, on Saturday night. Two men, aged 21 and 15, have been charged with murder and will appear in court on Tuesday. Andre Visagie, the AWB's secretary-general and a leading candidate to succeed Mr Terreblanche as head of the organisation, said the party was planning its response. "The death of Mr Terreblanche is a declaration of war by the black community of South Africa to the white community that has been killed for ten years on end," he said. He said there was "fierce anger" among AWB members. "They all call for revenge for Eugene TerreBlanche's death," he said. "There are people who threatened to start with violence. We encourage them to wait until we can launch co-ordinated actions at one time right across the country." He refused to rule out violence "if we don't have any option" and appealed for foreign intervention, including the provision of arms, "to assist us to defend us in this country where the white man is being murdered every day". The ruling African National Congress disputed Visagie's statement and Mr Zuma called the killing a "terrible deed". "South Africans not to allow agent provocateurs to take advantage of this situation by inciting or fuelling racial hatred," he said. "The murder of Terreblanche must be condemned, irrespective of how his killers think they may have been justified. They had no right to take his life." Jackson Mthembu, ANC spokesman, added: "The black community has never declared war on any other nationality in South Africa. It is in fact incorrect and these are sentiments that fuel polarisation of the South African populace." Nathi Mthethwa, the police minister, visited the scene of the killing, a homestead surrounded by rolling fields on the highveld plateau in North West province. He said: "We really appeal to people not to make inflammatory statements, no matter where they come from, because they are not going to be helpful." Mr Terreblanche, 69, rose to prominence in the 1980s, campaigning for a separate white homeland and championing a tiny minority determined to preserve apartheid. He was known for his fiery rhetoric and his white supremacist movement mounted a bombing campaign to defend apartheid. He later serving a prison sentence for the attempted murder of a black security guard. His death came amid an ongoing controversy over the ANC Youth Leader, Julius Malema, singing an apartheid-era song that advocates killing white farmers at a rally. A South African court has ruled the song, which includes the line 'Kill the Boer', is illegal but the ANC has defended it as part of its heritage from the struggle against apartheid. Boer is Afrikaans for a farmer, but is often used as a disparaging term for any white in South Africa. Opposition parties have called for called for action and highlighted the fact that more than 3,000 white farmers are estimated to have been murdered since the end of apartheid in 1994. There is growing disenchantment among blacks in South Africa for whom the right to vote has not translated into jobs and better housing and education. Some consider themselves betrayed by leaders governing the richest country on the continent and pursuing a policy of black empowerment that has made millionaires of a tiny black elite while millions remain trapped in poverty, even as whites continue to enjoy a privileged lifestyle. The white supremacist leader was hacked to death at his Transvaal farm on Saturday – the same day that a senior member of the African National Congress (ANC) called for the nationalisation of all South Africa's foreign-owned mines. Speaking in Zimbabwe on Saturday, Julius Malema, leader of the influential ANC Youth League, said South Africa's mines should be returned to black ownership. "They have exploited our minerals for a very long time. We want the mines, now it's our turn," Mr Malema said. Most of the UK-listed miners have significant interests in South Africa, particularly Anglo American, but Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton and Xstrata all have major assets within the country. Anglo American has majority stakes in many of the country's miners, including Anglo Platinum and Kumba Iron Ore. These four mining companies make up more than 10pc of the FTSE 100. Widespread violence could lead to disrupted mine output, analysts said, potentially causing spikes in some commodity prices. "This is one of the biggest threats to the South African mining industry today," one senior executive told The Daily Telegraph, although they declined to be named. According to the South African Department of Minerals and Energy, the country has about 85pc of global reserves of platinum, which is used to make catalytic converters for vehicles. It also has almost 80pc of the world's reserves of manganese and 73pc of global chrome stocks, which is used in the manufacture of stainless steel. The country also has significant reserves of gold, zirconium and titanium. "If South Africa adds to the problems it already has, investment is going to go elsewhere," John Meyer, head of mining at broker Fairfax said. "Other African countries such as Mozambique and Burkina Faso are opening up to foreign investment. South Africa's main advantage is its infrastructure, but these developments could prompt companies to look to safer countries to invest." The outspoken Mr Malema, who has praised the farm seizures of Robert Mugabe, is widely blamed for stoking violence against white farmers after singing a controversial apartheid-era song which includes the line "kill the Boer". He has been calling for nationalisation for the last three months, prompting Susan Shabangu, South Africa's respected mining minister, to say that a state takeover of the industry would not happen "in her lifetime". She said that Mr Malema was merely stretching his "intellectual muscles". In the face of rising concern among foreign investors, Jacob Zuma, South Africa's president, refuses to rein in Mr Malema. He argues that South Africa is a free country and all citizens and can do and say as they please. Mr Zuma condemned the murder of Mr Terreblanche and appealed for calm.Terreblanche murder is
'declaration of war' by blacks
South African President Jacob Zuma has called for calm as
supporters of white supremacist leader Eugene Terreblanche
said his murder was a "declaration of war" by blacks.
Mining groups fear backlash in South Africa
London-listed mining companies are bracing themselves for a wave of ethnic violence in South Africa as tensions escalate following the murder of notorious far-right politician Eugene Terreblanche.
Monday, 5 April 2010
Posts
