[This is a most interesting and disgusting tale, directly from farmers in North East of S.Africa. This lady & her husband used to have a farm and businesses in Zim. They have been living on a farm in S.Afica for a few years now. Jan]

Hi Jan,
A couple of weeks ago you wrote an article about a friend of yours (ex Zim), who had been robbed 14 times in 10 years on his farm in Meyerton.

We have been on our farm 70 kms from Nelspruit, since March 2003(i.e. only 2yrs & 8 mnths). In that short time we have been robbed 6 times! Our first robbery occurred a week after we arrived here from Zim! Welcome to the new SA!! They got into the farm shed through the roof & stole all the tractor batteries & the charger….. so our first big expense was to replace all those & put in an efficient alarm system, as well as all the other security stuff…. razor wire on high walls etc etc.

In spite of the high crime rate around here on farms we have been shocked & amazed at the lack of security on most farms!! Most homesteads don’t even have fences or gates, & doors stand open all times of the day or night! Farm equipment lies around all over the place, mostly in the open. People seem to be of the opinion that no matter what you do they will get in & take what they want anyway, so why bother!?!? With our Zim. mind set we are very security conscious, although having said that, in 36 years of marriage in Zim. we never ever had a single burglary at our home in Hillside, Bulawayo…… and only very rare instances of petty theft on the farm at Nyamandlovu. Our security awareness was a result of the anarchy that arose after the farm invasions in 2000. Unfortunately, the crime rate in suburbia in Zim. has escalated enormously as a result of the economy collapsing. I get a weekly update from Byo. Break-ins & carjacking is rife, but although the criminals are usually armed with guns & knives, they are used as scare tactics most of the time, & there certainly is not nearly the level of cold blooded violence one finds in S. African crimes.

We have now formed a security cell in this valley… there is only one access road over a river bridge, into the area… and we have put in a boom which is locked from dusk to dawn. We all have our own keys. It has had the effect of stopping the theft of large equipment & bakkies etc. Of course they still steal stuff, carry it through the river & hide it in the bush on the other side, for a pick up to occur at a pre-arranged time…..but there is a limit to what they can carry.

Sadly, most of the thefts are inside jobs. There is a big hood living in these parts who rules the roost & just sends out orders for whatever is in demand! Circular saws, battery chargers, batteries, tools, diesel, tyres, whatever!! The labourers do the rest! NONE of the thefts in the valley have resulted in an arrest or recovery of goods, (except when the farmer involved does his own follow up & recovers the goods himself) even when the thieves have been seen or named, because firstly, the police are utterly useless(& are even believed to be involved) and secondly EVERYONE is so totally terrified of the ‘big hood’ they simply refuse to give evidence in court, because they say if they do they will die!

After having our diesel tanks drained for the third time (always after a delivery of course!) & in spite of all sorts of security safegaurds, we have now relocated the tanks to inside a shed built like Fort Knox, right near the homestead. It has an alarm system one can hear for miles… & so far so good. On the one occasion the tanks were drained my husband tracked the stolen fuel, which had been rolled through the bush in drums, & across the river, & stashed for a pickup the following night. He asked the police to come & wait with him to secure an arrest, & they refused….. so he loaded up the drums & brought them back to the farm shed. We have never had any feedback from the police on a single robbery!!

At the farmhouse we have an electric fence & electric gate, security lights at night, & the alarm system is always ON. Of course the whole thing is useless, especially during summer storms, when ESKOM power outs can last for 24 to 48 hours!! On one occasion we were without electricity for 3 days, landlines were dead, and the cellphone signal was also off as a result of a lightening strike…. speak about living in outer Mongolia!

It was on one of these occasions that they cut the electric fence & stole the motorbike, out the carport, that my husband had brought from Zim. to get around the farm. They were pushing it down the farm road (at about 5am) towards the main road(where they had a bakkie waiting) when a neighbour came along & phoned us on his cell. The thieves simply dropped the bike & ran! So for once they didn’t get away with anything…. needless to say it only cost us the repair to the electric fence.

On another occasion we had dug a trough under the electric fence, to connect an elecric cable to the new shed. That night a group of youngsters(12 to 14 year olds) simply removed the soft soil, which had been filled in, & came in on their bellies under the electric fence into the garden. We have a self contained guest cottage….. & one of the windows had been left open. They took everything they could throw over the electric fence….all the bedding, sheets, towels, duvets, VCR…… but left the bigger stuff like the TV, microwave etc.!!! The fingerprints confirmed it had been kids. We told the police who they were & where they lived…. but as usual, we never heard another thing!!

It never actually ends….last week end, in a neighbouring area, a bakkie, a car, mountain bikes, and fuel was stolen. So we remain alert & aware, & hope it won’t happen to us again?! One thing we know for sure, we can’t depend on the police, hence the formation of a security cell that meets regularly. In conjunction with this in our area we also employ a professional anti-poaching unit, which has met with considerable success & has arrested several poachers. These rangers also pass on valuable info about clandestine behaviour around here!

We know the measures we have taken will not stop the crime, simply act as a deterrent. But at least, in the event of a farm attack, we have a plan of action ready!

Best regards,
Colleen.