Who and what is AfriForum?

AfriForum is an Afrikaans civil rights organisation that protects the rights of minority groups at national as well as provincial level, and anyone who can identify with AfriForum’s principles and objectives may join the organisation. AfriForum’s community plan focuses on mobilising communities to thus take control of their own streets and neighbourhoods again. AfriForum ensures that your constitutional and civil rights are recognised and protected at national level.

Wie en wat is AfriForum?

AfriForum is ’n Afrikaanse burgerregteorganisasie wat die regte van minderheidsgroepe op sowel nasionale as provinsiale vlak beskerm, en enigiemand wat met AfriForum se beginsels en doelstellings kan identifiseer, mag by die organisasie aansluit. AfriForum se gemeenskapsplan fokus daarop om gemeenskappe te mobiliseer om só weer beheer terug te neem oor hul eie strate en woonbuurtes. AfriForum verseker dat jou grondwetlike én burgerregte op nasionale vlak erken en beskerm word.

AfriForum questions State’s commitment to equal justice for all victims of crime

Soundbite: Barry Bateman (English)

Soundbite: Barry Bateman (Afrikaans)

Letter to Minister Policing – NASCOM – 19 May 2026 Download

While the recent widely-published search and arrest of high-profile suspects has been touted as evidence of the State’s firm commitment to ensuring that everyone is equal before the law and that crime is being rooted out, it has in fact exposed the State’s regrettable attitude that not all crime victims are equal in its eyes. AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit has taken up six cases with the South African Police Service (SAPS) in which suspects and accused persons in rape, murder, and gender-based violence matters have been on the run for years, with little apparent interest from the authorities in taking action.

Among the victims represented by the Unit is a woman who was allegedly kidnapped, raped, and later shot several times at point-blank range by her ex-boyfriend, Mbongiseni Welcome Zwane, in 2021. She remains in hiding, fearing he will return to kill her, while the suspect remains on the run despite SAPS having all his details. There is also the case of John Dercksen, also known as John Matambu, who disappeared after going on a fishing trip with Thomas Frederick “Ferdi” Visser in March 2024, with the chartered boat later found torched in Mozambique. Despite numerous reported sightings in Mozambique and South Africa, including reports of an arrest, Visser remains free, and is also wanted in connection with a separate 2015 sexual assault case.

And then there is the case of Helena Fairlie, who was allegedly stabbed multiple times with a screwdriver by Gregory Wynand Kleynhans in December 2022. Although Kleynhans was arrested and appeared in court, he was later released and has remained free since failing to appear for trial in October 2024, despite SAPS allegedly having all his particulars. Similarly, there is also the case of alleged child rapist Thulasizwe Mkhize, who was arrested and granted bail after his first court appearance in February 2023. After numerous postponements, Mkhize failed to appear in court in July 2024, prompting the issuing of a warrant for his arrest. He has not been rearrested.

Referring to the correspondence sent to the SAPS, Barry Bateman, spokesperson for the unit, says it appears that the police have given up and will make no further effort to trace and locate the suspects and accused persons who have allegedly committed vile crimes against women and children. “The police’s failure to ensure their arrest and appearance in court is a shocking indictment of their supposed commitment to protecting the most vulnerable in society,” says Bateman.

Bateman refers to the recent statement by the investigating officer in the case against parliamentarian Fadiel Adams, who told the court during Adams’ bail application that his public comments had undermined public trust in the SAPS. “The public has already lost confidence in law-enforcement institutions and prosecutorial processes. It is the police’s use of inordinate resources in pursuing politically sensitive cases, while apparently shrugging their shoulders when alleged rapists and murderers evade capture, that contributes to the loss of confidence in the authorities,” says Bateman.

The Unit has urged the police to provide a status update on the respective cases and to ensure that the suspects and accused are brought before court so that justice is served for their alleged victims.