EFF STATEMENT ON THE COLIGNY MURDER ACCUSED BEING GRANTED BAIL

8 May 2017

The EFF registers its disappointment with the Coligny Magistrate Court decision to grant the accused in the case of the murder of the 16 year old, Matlhomola Mosweu, R5000 bail each. The granting of bail to the two white farmers, Pieter Doorewaard and Phillip Schutte, must be seen as the reason community confidence has been uprooted in the rule of law. 

Mosweu's death sparked protests in Coligny in the previous week that saw the wrath of the community members demand justice for the brutal murder of the 16 year old young man. These protests, following the bail being granted have now escalated to the torching of the farmer's house and two other houses in the area. 

It is a fact that when it came to Fees Must Fall activists, many student activists who were fighting for access to education were denied bail. Many of these activists were black, with no criminal records, and were not accused of serious crimes like murder. Yet, white men, accused of serious crimes like murder and attempted murder are given cheap bail. 

The violence in Coligny must therefore be put squarely at the feet of our courts who fail to uphold justice. It is these lower court's incompetence that must be blamed for the community taking the law into their hands. 

We also condemn the attack on journalists by white farmers in Coligny. We call on the SAPS to arrest the white man who was seen on video attacking the black journalist with immediate effect.

Finally, we call on the state to appeal the decision of the judge to grant the accused bail. The law is there to guard and protect all of us. 

Statement issued by the Economic Freedom Fighters, 8 May 2017