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 welcomes arrest of policeman linked to theft of approximately R450 000 worth of cattle in Mpumalanga

ByAfriForum 01/09/202501/09/2025

Soundbite: Hennie Bekker (English)

Soundbite: Hennie Bekker (Afrikaans)

A 34-year-old member of the South African Police Service’s (SAPS) Stock Theft Unit was arrested in Standerton on Friday (29 August) on charges of the theft of approximately half a million rand’s worth of cattle. AfriForum welcomes this arrest but emphasises that the involvement of a member of the unit in this type of crime seriously undermines the public’s trust in the police and stock theft units.

According to Hennie Bekker, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for the Highveld and compiler of an AfriForum course on combating stock theft, the suspect is linked to stock theft that has been committed in the Standerton-Greylingstad-Perdekop area since at least March of this year. “The alleged involvement of the police member in stock theft is worrying, as the very member was supposed to investigate stock theft in the area but apparently abused his position to obtain information to enrich himself in the process,” explains Bekker.

The scale of cattle theft is also a cause for concern. According to SAPS statistics, more than 53 600 cattle were stolen nationwide in the 2024/2025 financial year. According to Bekker, this crime puts farmers under serious pressure, forcing them to incur additional expenses to protect their livestock. Hiring private security and installing security cameras are some of the ways in which farmers are trying to protect their farms and livestock.

However, Bekker emphasises that the fight against stock theft remains ongoing. “We are grateful to every police member who persists in their task of combating crime – and in this case, stock theft. Cooperation between the SAPS and initiatives by civil society, such as AfriForum’s farm and neighbourhood watches, is essential in the fight against crime, and we will not give up,” concludes Bekker.

The suspect is expected to appear in court today.