Thread by @StateDRL

In support of @POTUS Executive Orders, DRL just returned from a trip to South Africa to learn more about rural farm attacks and the breakdown of rule of law. Here’s what we found🧵[1/6]

South Africa holds enormous economic and geopolitical promise. However, current breakdowns in law and order are not conducive to growth or collaboration with the United States. The South African government must speak clearly and act decisively to address crime and condemn the violence. [2/6]

Violent crime is rampant in South Africa, but rural attacks—especially on farms—display a distinctly brutal pattern. Local sources reported 296 farm attacks and 49 murders in 2023, and that victims are disproportionately elderly, isolated, and face delayed police response. The South African Police Service reports the number increased to 55 farm murders in 2024. [3/6]

These are not ordinary crimes. In some documented cases, reports detail victims tortured or killed without anything being stolen.

Earlier this year, a man was beaten and hacked with a machete; in another incident, an elderly woman was assaulted and repeatedly stabbed. In both cases, no theft occurred. These attacks are not motivated by poverty alone. [4/6]

In a notable 2023 incident, assailants chanted “Kill the Boer, Kill the Farmer” as they stabbed their victim. But these aren’t fringe slogans—some South African leaders chant the same words to cheering crowds.

In one case, graffiti praising these leaders was painted on a farmhouse before its owners were brutally attacked. Despite this, as @POTUS highlighted earlier this year, many South African leaders have failed to condemn this song. [5/6]

youtube.com/watch?v=FLDl3m…

The international community and mainstream media have decided to remain silent on this issue. Rejecting this moral failure, the United States condemns these brutal attacks and stands with all South Africans working to build a peaceful and more prosperous country. [6/6]