Farm attacks, social justice and our food security

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South Africans were in shock this week that Australian Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton could say that a “civilised country like Australia” needs to help white farmers in South Africa. It certainly smacked of racism unbecoming of a government minister, especially from a country South Africa has historically had good relations with. There are certain things that ministers say which are quite frankly indefensible, making the job of their ambassadors quite challenging. However unacceptable Dutton’s comments were this week and however damaging they were to South Africa’s image abroad, we cannot run away from the fact that we do have a serious problem with farm killings. Read more: Australia's plan to save white SA farmers from 'horrific circumstances' It is shocking to learn of the details of the gruesome nature of recent killings, and how 15% of farm attacks last year involved torture.

Farmers attacked over the past year have been made to drink boiling water, have been tied up and burnt with iron rods, and frequently elderly women have been raped.

The sad part is that this type of torture does seem motivated by hatred. It is true that in many of these cases adequate follow-up on these crimes has not been done and in many cases convictions have not been secured.

So yes, it is understandable that farmers may be leaving our shores for places that they can farm in greater security. Australia is just one choice, as many South African farmers have already moved to Zambia and Mozambique where there are far greater levels of security.

There is no evidence to suggest that the police in South Africa are allowing this to happen, or that the state is indifferent.

But it is also true that despite the increasing frequency of such attacks, the state has ignored repeated pleas from the farming community to declare farm attacks a priority crime and to address this phenomenon with the same political grit as that of poaching, for example.

When one to two farmers are killed every week, and 84 were brutally murdered last year alone, then it is time to start a national conversation about how this trend can be reversed. That is especially true if we are adherents to Madiba’s stance that South Africa belongs to all who live in it.

As much as we should condemn the racism of foreign political leaders that throw careless statements around and in the process make it harder for South Africa to woo foreign investors, we must equally condemn the perpetrators of these crimes and bring them to justice. If we fail to speak up for those who are the victims today, we may just find ourselves at the receiving end of such brutality.

As the country moves towards fast-tracking land restitution and restoration, as Parliament has passed the motion to amend the constitution to allow for land expropriation without compensation, we will need to be all the more vigilant that attacks on farmers are not tolerated.

Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Lindiwe Sisulu has been at pains to emphasise that the land redistribution process will be handled responsibly, in keeping with the constitution, and will ensure that food security is not affected.

That is why her message this week was that South Africans and foreigners alike should not panic. There is no appetite to watch farmers being murdered or their rights violated in any way.

Farmers also need to realise that the slow pace of land reform over the past 23 years of our democracy is itself an injustice to the majority in this country. Since 1994, only 9% of commercial farmland has been transferred through restitution and redistribution.

Ben Cousins, the National Research Fund Chair in Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies at the University of the Western Cape, has argued that the market has not been redistributing land to black South Africans to the extent that AgriSA claims.

Cousins also maintains that it is a myth that land reform can involve the redistribution of state-owned land, as most state land in the rural areas comprises densely settled communal land not available for redistribution.

As the government considers how to carry out the new land distribution process in a responsible manner, a primary consideration needs to be how to pursue social justice while at the same time ensuring that the agricultural sector produces food that is affordable for the masses.

As it is, a large segment of the population is unable to afford proper and adequate nutrition. With food prices rising globally, and unprecedented periods of drought in South Africa, the formula adopted needs to be one that will ensure both maximum productivity and human security.

* Shannon Ebrahim is Group Foreign Editor.