Lobby group AfriForum said on Monday that if Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen does not urgently take official steps to demand the prioritisation of farm attacks, his statements in the US will amount to gross deception and misrepresentation.

This after Steenhuisen, during the recent meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa and US President Donald Trump, expressed concerns about farm attacks and stock theft, stating his support for them to be declared priority crimes.

AfriForum chief spokesperson for community safety Jacques Broodryk said it appeared that Steenhuisen was “playing the political game on the international stage”.

“It is unfortunate that it took a humiliating meeting with the leader of the US for the Minister of Agriculture to come to his senses and finally admit that farm attacks and murders should be declared a priority crime. This even though the issue has been ignored until now,” he said.

Broodryk said the civil rights organisation had repeatedly, unsuccessfully, called for the prioritisation of farm attacks.

“It is tragic that the government, despite years of pressure and requests to prioritise farm murders and attacks, has repeatedly refused to implement the prioritisation. Yet other serious crimes, such as rhino poaching and cash-in-transit heists, have been given priority status,” he said.

Meanwhile, he highlighted that last month AfriForum received feedback from the Hawks stating that it would not treat farm attacks as a priority crime.

“This stands in stark contrast to the treatment of other crimes. While rhino poaching is considered a priority crime and political murders receive special attention through the establishment of dedicated task teams, farm attacks do not receive the same treatment. Clearly, politicians’ lives are considered much more important than those of our farmers.

“It is time for government officials to stop abusing the suffering of farmers for political gain and instead to take decisive, transparent and concrete action to secure rural areas and prevent further loss of life,” he stated.