The attack on a farm worker and his wife in Bothaville in the Free State at the weekend has added to tension in the agricultural sector, already under duress from drought and spiking livestock theft.
According to a statement released by the DA, the worker was assaulted while patrolling sheep pens.
He was then dragged into his house where he and his wife were tied up with wire and further assaulted.
The assailants then loaded sheep into the vehicle and fled.
DA leader and member of the Free State Agriculture and Rural Development committee, Roy Jankielsohn, said that farm attacks remained a major concern.
Jankielsohn said it was estimated that crime cost Free State farmers between R300 000 and R500 000 per annum.
“This is over and above the costs of one of the severest ongoing droughts in our history as well as increasing fuel, electricity and other input costs.”
He stressed that the pressure on farmers and their workers were exacerbated by uncertainty regarding expropriation without compensation which “threatens the livelihoods of farmers and farm workers”.
Security risk analyst at Free State Agriculture, Dr Jane Buys, said farm murders and attacks in the Free State over the past six months were usually on or near weekends. – Zoë van Rooyen
