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.

George car dealer finally in court for deadly crash – but NPA fails the victim’s family again

Gareth Webster, the man accused of causing the crash that killed a woman in Sedgefield more than three years ago, has finally appeared in court, but the National Prosecuting Authority failed to inform the victim’s family. Danielle van Jaarsveld’s loved ones have long sought justice, which is why they approached AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit, whose involvement ensured that Webster’s case was thoroughly investigated and enrolled, but the NPA denied them the opportunity to witness the culmination of years of fighting for justice.

Webster appeared in the George District Court on 14 January on a charge of culpable homicide for allegedly causing the crash that killed Van Jaarsveld on 6 November, 2022, when he was driving an Audi SQ5 performance SUV and collided head-on with Van Jaarsveld’s Kia sedan. The crash took place on Swartvlei Beach Road, a few hundred meters from the Sedge Links Golf Course in Sedgefield, where Webster was attending a golf day.

Surveillance footage shows how the force of the impact launched the Kia backwards in the direction it was coming from, before rolling several times onto the side of the road. The SQ5 belonged to Webster’s employer, Audi Centre George. Van Jaarsveld died on the way to the hospital while her passenger, Monique van Zyl, her sister-in-law, suffered serious injuries. The pair were on their way to the beach. Webster and his passenger, who was also a golf day attendee, escaped without serious injuries.

On 14 November 2025, the unit wrote to the NPA saying: “We kindly request that you provide an indication of when the accused will be summonsed to court. We reaffirm our commitment to our clients, plan to attend court proceedings, and are considering filing an application to record the proceedings.”

Barry Bateman, the unit’s spokesperson, says despite this request, neither the unit nor the family was informed of Webster’s pending appearance. “Only after the unit inquired with the NPA on 20 January 2026, did the NPA’s office in George confirm that the accused had appeared in court a week earlier. The NPA describes itself as being the lawyers for the people, yet its prosecutors consistently fail in their duty to be victim-focused. Danielle’s family has been pleading with the NPA to prosecute the case. It took the NPA more than a year to simply decide which court it should be heard in. And when the accused is finally summonsed, the family is completely left out. It’s difficult not to conclude that this wasn’t a mere oversight. Nevertheless, Danielle’s family will attend court at the next appearance, and AfriForum’s Private Prosecution will continue to support them,” says Bateman.

The case was postponed to 10 February 2026.