Open letter: Minister McKenzie, do not add to the downplaying of farm murders - Ayanda Zulu

Key topics:McKenzie's genocide claim called misleading and irresponsibleLetter defends AfriForum's stance while rejecting "white genocide" mythUrges SA leaders to choose truth over rhetoric on crime and violence.Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa’s bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here.The auditorium doors will open for BNIC#2 on 10 September 2025 in Hermanus. For more information and tickets, click here..By Ayanda Zulu*.Dear Minister McKenzie,You are no stranger to the open letter format. In your political journey, you have often chosen this method to engage those you believe are in need of correction. I take a similar approach here – not as a foe, but as a South African citizen concerned about the tone and direction of our national discourse.Recently, you posted a tweet noting that thirty young people had been killed in the Western Cape. You proceeded to suggest that the Coloured community is “closest to genocide.” With respect, Minister, this is a deeply irresponsible statement. The word genocide carries a very specific meaning: it refers to the deliberate and systematic extermination of a group, in whole or in part, on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, or nationality. What is happening in the Western Cape is tragic, yes – and undeniably urgent. But it is not genocide.The gang violence you referred to has long been a plague in the province. It erodes families and destabilises communities. Rooted in a complex interplay of poverty, ineffective policing, and social dysfunction, it demands a response grounded in urgency and clarity. However, inflating it to the level of genocide does nothing to advance the cause of those suffering. On the contrary, it trivialises actual genocides and risks dulling our collective sensitivity to such crimes when they do actually occur.It is important to reflect on the context in which you made this statement. While many might interpret your tweet as a cry of outrage on behalf of the neglected, it is also evidently a backhanded response – or a pushback – against those who have raised legitimate concerns about farm attacks in the country. In particular, it seems to be aimed at organisations such as AfriForum, which you presumably believe have exaggerated the issue of farm attacks to the point of misleading the international community. You appear to view them as culprits behind the “white genocide” myth.This is not a new line of reasoning. It has become increasingly common among those who seek to undermine the severity of farm attacks. AfriForum and others are accused of manufacturing hysteria and misrepresenting white South Africans as exceptional victims. Their use of crime statistics is often framed as serving a political agenda. But this narrative is deeply flawed.First, it ignores the fact that the primary pushers of the “white genocide” myth have been primarily mainstream journalists and radicals on the left of the political spectrum, who weaponise it as a red herring to discredit the issue of farm attacks and shield the state from scrutiny. Credible voices, including AfriForum's, have not used the term genocide to describe farm attacks and have consistently and publicly rejected it. Second, this kind of response fails to engage the actual arguments being made. Those who raise concerns about farm attacks are not suggesting that white South Africans are the only victims of crime. Rather, they are advancing three key points:Farm attacks are a matter of grave concern. While the most recent crime statistics indicate a marginal decline, these attacks remain disproportionately brutal and traumatic. They often involve torture, sadistic violence, and the targeting of individuals who are especially vulnerable. Farm attacks are not treated as a priority crime by the South African Police Service (SAPS). This is in contrast to other crimes such as cash-in-transit heists and gang violence in the Western Cape, which benefit from dedicated strategies and resources. Given the strategic importance of agriculture to the economy and the vulnerability of farmers operating in remote areas, one can reasonably argue that the absence of a tailored security strategy amounts to a form of state complicity. Calling it such is not the same as accusing the government of orchestrating a genocide. It is simply a demand for consistency and fairness. The relevance of the broader social climate in which these crimes occur. Racial tension remains a defining feature of the country's landscape. In such a context, the legal protection of the “Kill the Boer” chant, which is defended on the basis of liberation heritage, is profoundly misguided. This chant is not a harmless historical slogan. It is inflammatory, divisive, and open to interpretation by those who may take it as a call to violence. Upholding it under the banner of free expression undermines national reconciliation and disrespects the pain of those who have suffered. .It is with this in mind that I urge you, Minister, to choose words with the care and precision this country so desperately needs. Our challenges are real and urgent, but exaggerations and misrepresentations only deepen divisions and distract from effective solutions. If we are to build a South Africa where all communities feel safe and valued, our discourse must be grounded in truth and respect. Only then can we move forward together.Sincerely,Ayanda S Zulu.*Ayanda Sakhile Zulu holds a BSocSci in Political Studies from the University of Pretoria and is an intern at the Free Market Foundation.

Open letter: Minister McKenzie, do not add to the downplaying of farm murders - Ayanda Zulu

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