Farm attacks: Robbery motive

2004-09-21 13:36

Pretoria - More than 90% of attacks on farms and smallholdings were committed with robbery in mind, according to the police's annual report released this week.

"Farmers... may be targeted because robbers are under the impression that (they) have large quantities of cash and firearms in their homesteads, are easy targets because they live out of hearing distance from one another, and are older and more vulnerable than the average city dweller.

"Unfortunately, the brutal and senseless nature of other crimes (rape, assault and murder) that are committed during these robberies has created a persistent, unsubstantiated perception - almost a belief - among farmers that these incidents actually involve terror attacks that are aimed at driving them from their land."

The 2003/04 annual report, released on Monday, shows that murders of farm dwellers had decreased by 14.6% from 103 to 88 from the previous year.

Murder rate down

The murder rate has dropped consistently from 1998/99, when it stood at 153, and represented one murder more than the previous lowest figure of 87 in 1997/98.

The number of violent attacks decreased by 14.4% from 903 to 773 over the past two financial years - also the lowest since 1998/99. In 1997/98, the figure was 490.

According to the report, the likelihood of violence against farm dwellers ending in murder has decreased by 36% from the 1997/98 financial year.

However, some provinces showed increases over the past two years, like KwaZulu-Natal with a rise of 36 violent attacks (43.4%), the Free State with 19 (46.3%) and the Eastern Cape with seven (19.4%).

Murders increased in Gauteng by nine incidents (37.5%) and in the Eastern Cape and Free State by three cases each.

- SAPA