Eugène Ney Terre'Blanche (, 31 January 1941
[Terre'Blanche's year of birth is alternately given as 1941 or 1944. The majority of sources indicates 1941; sources that claim 1944 as his year of birth includ]
''The Star''
and th
– 3 April 2010) was an
Afrikaner nationalist who founded and led the
Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB; Afrikaner Resistance Movement in English).
[ Prior to founding the AWB, Terre'Blanche served as a South African Police officer, was a farmer, and was an unsuccessful ]Herstigte Nasionale Party
The Herstigte Nasionale Party (Reconstituted National Party) is a List of political parties in South Africa, South African political party which was formed as a Far-right politics, far-right splinter group of the now defunct National Party (So ...
(Reconstituted National Party) candidate for local office in the Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name Transvaal.
* South African Republic (1856–1902; af, ...
. He was a major figure in the right-wing backlash against the collapse of apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
. His beliefs and philosophy have continued to be influential amongst white supremacists in South Africa and across the world.
Under Terre'Blanche, the AWB swore to use violence to preserve minority rule
In political science, minoritarianism (or minorityism) is a neologism for a political structure or process in which a minority segment of a population has a certain degree of primacy in that entity's decision making. Minoritarianism may be contr ...
, opposing any concessions offered to the African National Congress
The African National Congress (ANC) is a Social democracy, social-democratic political party in Republic of South Africa, South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when ...
– an organisation AWB supporters repeatedly branded as Marxist
Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
terrorist
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
s – and gaining notoriety for storming the Kempton Park Trade Centre during bilateral negotiations in 1993. AWB loyalists also clashed with South African security forces at the Battle of Ventersdorp
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
, a bloody skirmish in 1991 where police opened fire on a white crowd for the first time since the Rand Rebellion, leaving three Afrikaners dead. Immediately prior to South Africa's first multiracial election, Terre'Blanche's followers were linked to a number of bombings and assassinations targeting the South African Communist Party
The South African Communist Party (SACP) is a communist party in South Africa. It was founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA), tactically dissolved itself in 1950 in the face of being declared illegal by the governing Na ...
; armed AWB commandos participated in the crisis in Bophuthatswana in 1994.
Terre'Blanche spent three years in a Rooigrond
Rooigrond is a town in Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality in the North West province of South Africa.
Hamlet 16 km south-east of Mafikeng and 25 km south-west of Ottoshoop
Ottoshoop is one of the small towns in the Mahikeng Loc ...
prison for assaulting a petrol station attendant and for the attempted murder of a black security guard around 1996. He was released in June 2004. On 3 April 2010, he was hacked and beaten to death on his Ventersdorp
Ventersdorp is a town of 4,200 in Dr Kenneth Kaunda District Municipality, North West Province, South Africa. It was the seat of the defunct Ventersdorp Local Municipality until 2016.
Ventersdorp is centrally located, making it easier to access m ...
farm, allegedly by two of his employees in a dispute over unpaid wages.
Background
Terre'Blanche's grandfather fought as a Cape Rebel for the Boer cause in the Second Boer War
The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...
, while his father was a lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
in the South African Defence Force and a leader of the local Commando.[
The progenitor of the Terre'Blanche name (translatable as either 'white land' or 'white earth' in French) in the region was a French ]Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
refugee, Estienne Terreblanche from Toulon
Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
(Provence
Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...
), who arrived at the Cape in 1704, fleeing anti-Protestant
Anti-Protestantism is bias, hatred or distrust against some or all branches of Protestantism and/or its followers.
Anti-Protestantism dates back to before the Protestant Reformation itself, as various pre-Protestant groups such as Arnoldis ...
persecution in France. The Terreblanche name has generally retained its original spelling though other spellings include Terre'Blanche, Terre Blanche, Terblanche and Terblans.
Born on a farm in the Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name Transvaal.
* South African Republic (1856–1902; af, ...
town of Ventersdorp
Ventersdorp is a town of 4,200 in Dr Kenneth Kaunda District Municipality, North West Province, South Africa. It was the seat of the defunct Ventersdorp Local Municipality until 2016.
Ventersdorp is centrally located, making it easier to access m ...
on 31 January 1941, Terre'Blanche attended Laerskool Ventersdorp and Hoër Volkskool in Potchefstroom
Potchefstroom (, colloquially known as Potch) is an academic city in the North West Province of South Africa. It hosts the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University. Potchefstroom is on the Mooi Rivier (Afrikaans for "pretty river" ...
, matriculating
Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination.
Australia
In Australia, the term "matriculation" is seldom used now. ...
in 1962. While in school, he gave early expression to his political leanings by founding the cultural organisation ''Jong Afrikanerharte'' (Young Afrikaner Hearts).[Russell, Alec, ''Big men, little people: the leaders who defined Africa''. Macmillan, 1999.]
He joined the South African Police, and was initially deployed in South West Africa (now Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
),[ which had been given to South Africa under a ]League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
Trust mandate after World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. Upon returning to South Africa, he became a Warrant Officer in the Special Guard Unit, which was assigned to members of the Cabinet.[
]
Political career
Herstigte Nasionale Party
During the late 1960s, Terre'Blanche increasingly opposed what he called the "liberal policies" of B. J. Vorster
Balthazar Johannes "B. J." Vorster (; also known as John Vorster; 13 December 1915 – 10 September 1983) was a South African apartheid politician who served as the prime minister of South Africa from 1966 to 1978 and the fourth state presid ...
, then Prime Minister of South Africa
The prime minister of South Africa ( af, Eerste Minister van Suid-Afrika) was the head of government in South Africa between 1910 and 1984.
History of the office
The position of Prime Minister was established in 1910, when the Union of Sout ...
. After four years of service in the South African Police, he resigned to pursue a career in politics, running unsuccessfully for local office in Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
as a member of the far-right Herstigte Nasionale Party
The Herstigte Nasionale Party (Reconstituted National Party) is a List of political parties in South Africa, South African political party which was formed as a Far-right politics, far-right splinter group of the now defunct National Party (So ...
.[Eugene Terre'Blanche (1941–2010)]
. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging
Disillusioned with the established avenues for political participation, Terre'Blanche founded the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB) in Heidelberg with six other individuals in 1973. Initially a secret society, the AWB first appeared on the public scene after its members were charged and fined in connection with the tarring and feathering of Floors van Jaarsveld, a professor of history who had publicly voiced the opinion that the Day of the Vow
The Day of the Vow ( af, Geloftedag) is a religious public holiday in South Africa. It is an important day for Afrikaners, originating from the Battle of Blood River on 16 December 1838, before which about 400 Voortrekkers made a promise to God ...
, a religious public holiday in remembrance of the Battle of Blood River
The Battle of Blood River (16 December 1838) was fought on the bank of the Ncome River, in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa between 464 Voortrekkers ("Pioneers"), led by Andries Pretorius, and an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 Zulu. Est ...
, was nothing more than a secular event with hardly any real reference point in history.[ Although Terre'Blanche would later express his regrets regarding the incident when testifying before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, he suggested that his convictions relating to the sanctity of the Day of the Vow might make his actions more understandable. In the years that followed, Terre'Blanche's speeches at public gatherings often evoked the Battle of Blood River,][ and his ]oratorical
Public speaking, also called oratory or oration, has traditionally meant the act of speaking face to face to a live audience. Today it includes any form of speaking (formally and informally) to an audience, including pre-recorded speech deliver ...
skills earned him much support among the white right wing in South Africa; the AWB claimed 70,000 members at its height. In September 1977, Johannesburg newspaper ''The World
In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
'' reported that Terre'Blanche had been investigated on charges of bestiality involving a number of African bushpigs.
Throughout the 1980s, Terre'Blanche continued to present himself and the AWB as an alternative to both the National Party-led government and the Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
, and he remained staunchly opposed to the reform policies of P. W. Botha to establish additional, albeit still separate, parliamentary chambers for non-whites, and to grant suffrage to Coloureds
Coloureds ( af, Kleurlinge or , ) refers to members of multiracial ethnic communities in Southern Africa who may have ancestry from more than one of the various populations inhabiting the region, including African, European, and Asian. South ...
and South Africans of Indian origin.["Obituary: Eugene Terreblanche"]
BBC News. Retrieved 4 April 2010. The organisation's strongest support was found in the rural communities of South Africa's North, with comparably few supporters in urban areas where his following was largely limited to middle and lower-income Afrikaners.[
]
End of apartheid
Terre'Blanche viewed the end of apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
as a surrender to communism, and threatened full-scale civil war if President F. W. de Klerk
Frederik Willem de Klerk (, , 18 March 1936 – 11 November 2021) was a South African politician who served as state president of South Africa from 1989 to 1994 and as deputy president from 1994 to 1996 in the democratic government. As South A ...
handed power to Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...
and the African National Congress
The African National Congress (ANC) is a Social democracy, social-democratic political party in Republic of South Africa, South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when ...
.["Eugene Terre'Blanche"]
(Obituary), ''Daily Telegraph''. Retrieved 4 April 2010. When De Klerk addressed a meeting in Terre'Blanche's hometown of Ventersdorp in 1991, Terre'Blanche led a protest, and the Battle of Ventersdorp
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
ensued between the AWB and the police, with a number of people killed.[ Terre'Blanche claimed that it was only when he stood between the police and the AWB and demanded a ceasefire that the shooting ended. Terre'Blanche accused President de Klerk of instigating the riot for political gain.
In an attempt to disrupt the negotiation process in 1993, Terre'Blanche led an armed invasion of the World Trade Centre in Kempton Park while negotiations to end apartheid were in progress. After a memorandum of grievances was presented to National Party minister Roelf Meyer and ]Dawie de Villiers
David Jacobus de Villiers (10 July 1940 – 23 April 2022) was an ordained Minister in the Dutch Reformed Church; a South African Government minister and a Springbok rugby captain.
Biography
His father Coenie was a railway clerk and organizer ...
and after an agreement that no arrests would be made, the AWB withdrew from the premises. That evening several identified AWB leaders were arrested and their wives were incarcerated in Soweto, separately from their husbands. Vlakplaas General Krappies Engelbrecht was appointed to launch an investigation.
Terre'Blanche claimed he and President Lucas Mangope of the predominantly ethnic Tswana Homeland of Bophuthatswana
Bophuthatswana (, meaning "gathering of the Tswana people"), officially the Republic of Bophuthatswana ( tn, Riphaboliki ya Bophuthatswana; af, Republiek van Bophuthatswana), was a Bantustan (also known as "Homeland"; an area set aside for mem ...
came to a "mutual agreement" on 17 February 1992 to aid each other in the "event of a communist threat". On 4 March 1994 Mangope announced that Bophutatswana would not participate in the South African general election in an effort to maintain Bophutatswana's independence from the Republic of South Africa. Bophuthatswana's minister of justice, Godfrey Mothibe tried in vain to convince Mangope to participate in the election, but then accused the ANC of orchestrating the revolt, which was helped by the stance taken by South Africa's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Pik Botha. Thousands of ANC supporters were bussed in from outside Bophuthatswana to support the popular uprising. Terre'Blanche claimed a conspiracy by citing a "three-step plan" by the ANC in an effort to destabilise Bophuthatswana, which included ANC infiltration of the Bophuthatswana police and military. However, ANC candidate for the North West Province, Popo Molefe claimed the ANC was merely supporting the people of Bophuthatswana after it became clear that their political freedoms were limited.
The AWB were subsequently defeated while invading Bophuthatswana to prop up the autocratic leader of the Bantustan
A Bantustan (also known as Bantu homeland, black homeland, black state or simply homeland; ) was a territory that the National Party administration of South Africa set aside for black inhabitants of South Africa and South West Africa (now N ...
in 1994 and Terre'Blanche did not follow up on his earlier threats of war.
Terre'Blanche claimed he had personally communicated with Mangope on 10 March 1994, prior to mobilising his men to protect the capital Mmabatho against looting and unrest. Officers of the Bophuthatswana Defence Force
The Bophuthatswana Defence Force ( af, Bophuthatswana Weermag; BDF) was established on 6 December 1977 from trainees of the South African Defence Force. It was the defence force of the Republic of Bophuthatswana, a nominally independent bantust ...
initially received the AWB militia with "great joy and surprise".(Vuur en Verraad, Arthur Kemp) The AWB militia assembled in an airport hangar in Mmabatho, where they were to be provided with rations and firearms. Terre'Blanche ordered his men to remove their AWB badges upon the request of the Bophuthatswana Defence Force. While contained at the hangar, an unidentified and independent faction carrying the AWB emblems started shooting indiscriminately at the public. Terre'Blanche concluded that the South African intelligence services may have set up the shooting in order to discredit the AWB, since the media broadcast footage of the individuals' emblems, but did not publicise their identity. The Bophuthatswana police systematically began to remove the media from strategic locations, and the initial hospitality shown to the AWB militia was replaced by contempt. When Bophuthatswana fell into complete anarchy, the AWB withdrew.
1991 documentary and libel case
Terre'Blanche was the subject of the television documentary ''The Leader, His Driver and the Driver's Wife
''The Leader, His Driver and the Driver's Wife'' is a 1991 British feature-length documentary film set during the final days of the apartheid in South Africa, particularly centring on Eugène Terre'Blanche, founder and leader of the far-right Af ...
'' (1991), directed by British filmmaker Nick Broomfield
Nicholas Broomfield (born 1948) is an English documentary film director. His self-reflective style has been regarded as influential to many later filmmakers. In the early 21st century, he began to use non-actors in scripted works, which he cal ...
. Broomfield's documentary claimed Terre'Blanche had an affair with Jani Allan, the journalist who had interviewed him for South Africa's ''Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
''; an assertion she disputed as well as her portrayal in the documentary. This provoked a scandal in the AWB. In July 1989, Cornelius Lottering, a member of the breakaway Orde van die Dood The Orde van die Dood (Afrikaans: Order of Death or Order of the Dead) was a militant offshoot of the Afrikaner Resistance Movement (Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging) which sought to create a white Boer homeland (Volkstaat) in South Africa, beginning in ...
group, orchestrated a failed assassination attempt on Allan's life by placing a bomb outside her Sandton apartment.
This led to Allan taking libel proceedings against the documentary broadcaster Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
in 1992 in the London's High Court. During the court hearings, several transcripts of their alleged sexual relationship appeared in the South African and British press. Terre'Blanche submitted a sworn statement to the London court denying he had had an affair with Allan. In a rare interview with the Afrikaans Sunday newspaper ''Die Rapport'', his wife Martie Terre'Blanche denounced the rumours. Although the judge found that Channel 4's allegations had not defamed Allan, he did not rule on whether or not there had been an affair. The South African business newspaper '' Financial Mail'' published a lead story on 6 August detailing the theory that F.W. de Klerk had orchestrated the libel case to discredit Terre'Blanche and the far right movement in South Africa. Allan has continued to dismiss the claims.
Amnesty
Following the end of apartheid, Terre'Blanche and his supporters sought amnesty for the storming of the World Trade Centre, the 'Battle of Ventersdorp', and other acts.
Amnesty was granted by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
Later years
In 2004, he was voted No. 25 in SABC3
SABC 3 (stylised as S3) is a South African free-to-air public television network owned by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). It carries programming in English and, few in other South African languages. It has a number of its own re ...
's ''Great South Africans
''Great South Africans'' was a South African television series that aired on SABC3 and hosted by Noeleen Maholwana Sangqu and Denis Beckett. In September 2004, thousands of South Africans took part in an informal nationwide poll to determine t ...
'', a list of 100 South African personalities. Controversy over the list led the SABC to cancel the television series.
Terre'Blanche was much ridiculed after he was filmed falling off his horse during a parade in Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.
Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...
. After his murder, the state-owned SABC said on the evening news that he would be remembered "as a failed horseman". Terre'Blanche claimed the media only showed part of the fall and explained that unedited footage of the incident would show that the horse had slipped. He accused the media of double standards in reporting when praising Mbhazima Shilowa when he fell from, but immediately remounted his horse.
Broomsfield's sequel to his 1991 documentary, ''His Big White Self
''His Big White Self'' is a 2006 documentary film made by Nick Broomfield. It is a sequel to his earlier documentary ''The Leader, His Driver and the Driver's Wife'' (1991). It was first shown as part of More4's Nick Broomfield week which began ...
'', was first broadcast in February 2006. Terre'Blanche was also interviewed by Louis Theroux in episode 3.3 "Boer Separatists" of the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
series ''Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends
''Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends'' is a television documentary series, in which Louis Theroux gives viewers the chance to get brief glimpses into the worlds of individuals and groups that they would not normally come into contact with or experien ...
'', and was characterized during the episode by Theroux speaking to a former follower of Terre'Blanche as "very hostile, deeply racist".
In March 2008, the AWB announced the re-activation of the political party for 'populist' reasons, citing the encouragement of the public. Reasons for the return have been attributed principally to attacks on commercial farmers and ethnic Boers, the electricity crisis, corruption across government departments and rampant crime. Throughout April 2008, Terre'Blanche was to be the speaker at several AWB rallies, encompassing Vryburg
Vryburg () is a large agricultural town with a population of 48,400 situated in the Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District Municipality of the North West Province (South Africa), North West Province of South Africa. It is the seat and the industrial ...
, Middelburg, Mpumalanga
Middelburg is a large farming and industrial town in the South African province of Mpumalanga.
History
It was initially established as a halfway station between Lydenburg and Pretoria by the Republic of Lydenburg in 1860. That republic would merg ...
and Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.
Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...
.[
He had been calling for a "free Afrikaner republic", and vowed to take his campaign to the United Nations' ]International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...
in The Hague in a bid to secure this. He favoured large tracts of land that he claimed had been purchased from the ethnic Swazis in the eastern portion of the South African Republic, from the Zulus in northern Natal, and others, as well as largely uninhabited portions of the interior that had been settled by the Voortrekkers. In June 2008, it was announced that the AWB Youth Wing would be launched and Terre'Blanche was to be its founding member.
In a video interview in 2008, he voiced his objection to a proposal to change the Springbok emblem of the South Africa national rugby union team (Springboks). He stated that the Springbok emblem could be replaced with an impala or kudu for sports teams representing the new Afrikaner republic.
In September 2009, he addressed a three-day convention attended by 300 Afrikaners which was intended to develop a strategy for ''"Boer liberation"''. Terre'Blanche reinforced earlier claims for land in Northern Natal and the Eastern Transvaal. In October 2009 several right-wing groups led by Terre'Blanche outlined their future plans at a Ventersdorp meeting. In an interview with the ''Mail and Guardian
The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal syst ...
'' he said he wanted to unite 23 organisations under one umbrella, in order to take, as he had vowed, the fight of "the free Afrikaner" to the International Court of Justice.
In an interview with the ''Mail and Guardian'', he stated that he would publish his biography, ''Blouberge van Nimmer'' (''The Blue Mountains of Long Ago''), in December 2009. The biography was ready for press at the time of his death and published under the name "My Storie", as told to author Amos van der Merwe. A complaint was lodged in December 2009 with the South African Human Rights Commission
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) was inaugurated in October 1995 as an independent chapter nine institution. It draws its mandate from the South African Constitution by way of the Human Rights Commission Act of 1994.
Commissioner ...
regarding inflammatory comments he was alleged to have made.
Conviction and prison sentence
On 17 June 2001, Terre'Blanche was sentenced to six years in prison, of which he served three years, for assaulting John Ndzima, a petrol station
A filling station, also known as a gas station () or petrol station (), is a facility that sells fuel and engine lubricants for motor vehicles. The most common fuels sold in the 2010s were gasoline (or petrol) and diesel fuel.
Gasoline ...
worker, and the attempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions.
Canada
Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seven ye ...
of Paul Motshabi, a security guard, in 1996.["Eugene Terre'Blanche: South African white supremacist leader"](_blank)
''Times Online''. Retrieved 7 April 2010. Terre'Blanche denied both accusations.
One of only three whites in the Rooigrond
Rooigrond is a town in Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality in the North West province of South Africa.
Hamlet 16 km south-east of Mafikeng and 25 km south-west of Ottoshoop
Ottoshoop is one of the small towns in the Mahikeng Loc ...
prison near Mafikeng
Mafikeng, officially known as Mahikeng and previously Mafeking (, ), is the capital city of the North West province of South Africa.
Close to South Africa's border with Botswana, Mafikeng is northeast of Cape Town and west of Johannesburg. In ...
, during his time in prison he claimed to have become a born-again Christian
Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sepa ...
and to have moderated many of his racist
Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...
views.
Assault on Ndzima
The assault on Ndzima occurred after a confrontation over Ndzima's testimony against two white boys who had broken into a pharmacy in Ventersdorp. Terre'Blanche said that he merely argued with Ndzima after the burglary, questioning Ndzima's claims to have seen the burglars. According to Terre'Blanche, during the argument his dog broke loose and chased Ndzima. Terre'Blanche asked the state prosecution to explain why there was no blood on his overall after the alleged assault. He claimed that a bogus case had been built against him in order to "bury the conservative element of Afrikaner-nationalism in the shallow grave of injustice". The court rejected his claims, concluding that Terre'Blanche had assaulted Ndzime as retribution for testifying against whites. Terre'Blanche later pointed out that his defence attorney suddenly resigned as a member of the ultra-conservative white Conservative Party's Volksraad and joined the ANC shortly after the conclusion of the court case.
Attempted murder of Motshabi
Security Guard Paul Motshabi was permanently disabled when he was beaten in 1996. He was crippled and intellectually impaired by brain damage sustained in the attack, and his wife left him. He was one of 16 victims of violence in the South Africa's North West who received new houses as part of the national government's campaign to mark 16 days of activism against violence against women and children.
Terre'Blanche also maintained his innocence in the Motshabi case, stating that he had discovered Motshabi already beaten in a park while patrolling Ventersdorp, after which he took him to hospital. Although he was not present when the alleged attack happened, Gabriel Kgosimang, an ex-employee of Terre'Blanche, testified that his former employer had repeatedly beaten Motshabi over the head, upper body, neck and shoulders after he crashed into him with his vehicle. The official medical report only cites a single hit to the head.
Subsequent disputes
Terre'Blanche was released on 11 June 2004. The AWB website continued to claim that these accusations, along with other scandals involving him, were fabricated by the "Black Government and the left wing media". Terre'Blanche subsequently stated that a policeman had identified the real attackers of Motshabi. The names were supposedly contained in a sealed envelope and kept in safekeeping with instructions given that this information would be released in case something "unnatural" should happen to him. These names have not yet been released, despite the murder of Terre'Blanche.
Poetry
Prior to the 1994 multi-racial elections, Terre'Blanche's Afrikaans-language works were on the state syllabus of Natal schools. Upon his release from jail, he quoted Wordsworth
William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Ballads'' (1798).
Wordsworth's ' ...
's poem ''I Wandered Lonely As a Cloud''. He had previously released a CD of his poetry collection and most recently a DVD. The DVD was named "Inktrane", which is directly translated to English as "ink tears". This DVD was released through 11.3% Motion Pictures (Pty) Ltd.
Murder
Terre'Blanche, who had lived in relative obscurity since the decline of his organisation, was murdered on his farm ''Villana'', just outside Ventersdorp, on 3 April 2010. He was beaten and hacked to death with pipes and ''panga'' machetes whilst napping. His body was found on his bed with severe facial and head injuries. His murder has been categorised as a typical and notable case of South African farm attacks
South African farm attacks ( af, plaasaanvalle) are violent crimes, including murder, assault and robbery, that take place on farms in South Africa. The attacks target farmers, who are usually white, and farm workers, who are usually black. Black ...
.["Farm Murder, Anti-Apartheid Song Stoke Racial Tensions in South Africa"](_blank)
''Voice of America''.
South African President
The president of South Africa is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of South Africa. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of South Africa and is the commander-in-chief of the South African Natio ...
Jacob Zuma
Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan name Msholozi, and was a former anti-aparth ...
, who followed up an overnight statement with a televised address called for calm and for "responsible leadership" following the murder, describing it as a "terrible deed;" and described the murderer as "cowardly."["Zuma slams 'cowards' and appeals for calm"](_blank)
''The Star''. Zuma's words were echoed by the AWB and organisations including AfriForum and Solidarity
''Solidarity'' is an awareness of shared interests, objectives, standards, and sympathies creating a psychological sense of unity of groups or classes. It is based on class collaboration.''Merriam Webster'', http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictio ...
. Minister of Police Nathi Mthethwa
Emmanuel Nkosinathi "Nathi" Mthethwa is a South African politician who has served as Minister of Arts and Culture since February 2014. He was appointed again in 2019 for his second term, taking also the portfolio of Sport under his wing. He also ...
, Commissioner of police Bheki Cele and other high ranking police officials[ANC rethinks "Shoot The Boer song"](_blank)
IOL. and politicians["Lekota visits Terre'Blanche family farm"](_blank)
5 April 2010, IOL. visited Terre'Blanche's family in Ventersdorp the morning after the murder to express sympathy with the family.["Mthethwa, Cele visit Terre'blanche family"](_blank)
IOL.["Anger and anxiety after Terreblanche murder"](_blank)
BBC News.
Two males, Chris Mahlangu, aged 28, and Patrick Ndlovu, aged 15, were arrested. Both were employees at Terre'Blanche's farm. They were both charged with murder, and one was released on bail. Terre'Blanche's daughter Bea told the media that the two workers had not been paid for March because her father could not get his banking in order before the Easter weekend, and that an arrangement had been made to pay them after the weekend. She stated that he had enjoyed a good relationship with his employees, which had been strengthened by their work with animals on the farm.
Aftermath
Chris Mahlangu's announcement to other farm workers that he was "now their boss" fuelled suspicions that the murder was politically motivated. The murder took place amid a racial controversy in South Africa involving the singing
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
of a song by African National Congress Youth League
The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) is the youth wing of the African National Congress (ANC). As set out in its constitution, the ANC Youth League is led by a National Executive Committee (NEC) and a National Working Committee (NW ...
leader Julius Malema
Julius Sello Malema (born 3 March 1981) is a South African politician and activist who is a Member of Parliament and the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), a left-wing party which he founded in 2013. He was formerly the President of ...
, which includes the lyrics "Shoot the Boer" ("''Dubul' ibhunu
Dubul' ibhunu, translated as shoot the Boer or kill the Boer, is a South African song. It is sung in Xhosa and Zulu.
Critics argue that the song celebrates violence against the white South Africans whereas supporters of the song claim that it is ...
''"). The ANC, which had previously defended its right to sing the song, announced that it would consider a moratorium on the singing of the song, following the murder, in the interests of national cohesion. Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille said that the murder would "inflame tensions" in South Africa. Malema denied the song had anything to do with the murder, and defended his singing of it, saying he was "ready to die", and that he was not scared of Boers, in reference to threats, later retracted, that Terre'Blanche would be avenged.["I'm ready to die, says emotional Malema"](_blank)
IOL. ANC leaders later announced a temporary ban on the singing of the song.["Malema silent as ANC stops race songs"](_blank)
www.timeslive.co.za.
Thousands attended Terre'Blanche's funeral, held at noon on 9 April 2010 at Ventersdorp's Protestant Church. Later the same day, he was buried on his farm.
Court case
The two suspects appeared in court in Ventersdorp on 6 April 2010 amid racially charged scenes, and were charged with murder, robbery and ''crimen injuria
''Crimen injuria'' is a crime under South African common law, defined to be the act of "unlawfully, intentionally and seriously impairing the dignity of another." Although difficult to precisely define, the crime is used in the prosecution of ce ...
'', for injuring the dignity of Terre'Blanche by leaving his trousers pulled down after killing him. The AWB retracted earlier calls to avenge the murder as Zuma appealed for peace. Nevertheless, members of the ANC supported the accused by turning up at the court in huge numbers, and singing revolutionary songs. Terre'Blanche's supporters also turned up at the court, singing the former South African national anthem, " Die Stem van Suid Afrika".
On 22 May 2012, 29-year-old Chris Mahlangu was found guilty of the murder and sentenced to life in prison. 18-year-old Patrick Ndlovu, the other man accused in the case, was acquitted of murder due to a lack of forensic evidence, though he was found guilty of breaking-in. They had both pleaded not guilty, and declined to testify. Protesters from both sides were gathered outside the court when the verdict was read. Judge John Horn ruled that there was no evidence that Mahlangu had been acting in self-defence, and that the murder had been committed for financial reasons. Although Mahlangu claimed that he had been raped, Horn declared that if that was the case he should have raised it immediately, which he never did. He also claimed that he had been acting in retaliation because he had been living in an "appalling condition... not fit for human habitation," as well as having experienced child exploitation on the farm.
In popular culture
In Harry Turtledove's 1992 science fiction novel '' The Guns of the South'', Eugene Terre'Blanche is fictionalised as the minor character Eugen Blankaard, whose name is a literal Afrikaans translation. This character, a historian of AWB, does not appear directly, but his writings are read by other characters. A poster of Terre'Blanche appears in the 1992 Australian drama ''Romper Stomper
''Romper Stomper'' is a 1992 Australian drama film written and directed by Geoffrey Wright in his feature film directorial debut. The film stars Russell Crowe, Daniel Pollock, Jacqueline McKenzie, Tony Le-Nguyen and Colin Chin. The film tells ...
'', about a neo-Nazi
Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazism, Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and Supremacism#Racial, racial supremacy (ofte ...
group in suburban Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
.
Terre'Blanche is the subject of two Nick Broomfield
Nicholas Broomfield (born 1948) is an English documentary film director. His self-reflective style has been regarded as influential to many later filmmakers. In the early 21st century, he began to use non-actors in scripted works, which he cal ...
documentaries: '' The Leader, His Driver, and the Driver's Wife'' and ''His Big White Self
''His Big White Self'' is a 2006 documentary film made by Nick Broomfield. It is a sequel to his earlier documentary ''The Leader, His Driver and the Driver's Wife'' (1991). It was first shown as part of More4's Nick Broomfield week which began ...
''.
Louis Theroux interviewed Terre'Blanche in 2000 as part of his ''Weird Weekends
''Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends'' is a television documentary series, in which Louis Theroux gives viewers the chance to get brief glimpses into the worlds of individuals and groups that they would not normally come into contact with or experien ...
'' documentary on the Boer.
See also
*Afrikaner nationalism
Afrikaner nationalism ( af, Afrikanernasionalisme) is a nationalistic political ideology which created by Afrikaners residing in Southern Africa during the Victorian era. The ideology was developed in response to the significant events in Afrik ...
*White nationalism
White nationalism is a type of racial nationalism or pan-nationalism which espouses the belief that white people are a raceHeidi Beirich and Kevin Hicks. "Chapter 7: White nationalism in America". In Perry, Barbara. ''Hate Crimes''. Greenwoo ...
* Volkstaat
*Orania, Northern Cape
Orania () is an Afrikaner separatist town founded by Afrikaners in South Africa. It is located along the Orange River in the Karoo region of the Northern Cape province. The town is split in two halves by the R369 road, and is from Cape Tow ...
Notes
References
External links
Interview by ''Mail and Guardian''
* ttp://therightperspectivepodcastblog.blogspot.com/2007/12/geloftedag-2007.html Eugene Terre'Blanche, 2007 interview on ''The Right Perspective'' (''Geloftedag'' Celebration)br>Obituary: Eugene Terre'Blanche
BBC News
{{DEFAULTSORT:Terreblanche, Eugene
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