Farmer shot dead in Eastern Cape

 

East London - A man has been shot dead in a farm attack in Barkly East, north of Elliot in the Eastern Cape, police said on Wednesday.
Sarel Pretorius was killed by two armed men on the farm Rooipoort on Tuesday evening, said Warrant Officer Nozuko Handile. His wife was locked in a bathroom. The attackers fled in the Pretorius's white bakkie.
"There is a task team that is busy investigating and searching for the suspects," said Handile.
Civil rights group AfriForum praised the police for their quick reaction.
Escalation in farm attacks
However, it said it was worried that the escalation in farm attacks last year would continue in 2014.
It would intensify its campaign to prioritise farm murders.
AfriForum deputy CEO Ernst Roets said it also aimed to get the police to establish specialist reaction units to ensure rural safety.
"There is no fence left to sit on in this crisis. Either the police are part of the solution or they are part of the problem," he said in a statement.
AfriForum community safety head Ian Cameron said added pressure on the government alone would not solve the crisis, and that the public also needed to take responsibility for their own safety.
"We appeal to people to become involved with community safety networks," he said.
"In communities where these networks were established, we can see a significant drop in crime," he said.
AfriForum said it would announce its action plan next week.

- SAPA