The people who forced Middelburg's Victor Mlotshwa into a coffin over alleged trespassing should face the full might of the law for the despicable act, President Jacob Zuma said yesterday.
"This incident, which was posted on social media, is shocking, painful and despicable in the extreme," Zuma said in a speech prepared for delivery at a National Council of Provinces session in East London.
"The incident is a reminder of the deep-seated racist attitudes that still prevail among some in our country, who still regard black people as lesser human beings," said Zuma.
The incident was also a reminder of the work still to be done to protect farmworkers, who "suffer in silence" because of the secluded nature of their work, as well as the need for continued land restitution.
Two white men, Theo Jackson and Willem Oosthuizen, appeared in the Middelburg Magistrate's Court on Wednesday over the incident and they will remain behind bars until they appear again on January 25.
Mlotshwa had allegedly trespassed on a farm at the JM de Beer Boerdery, next to the Komati power station in Mpumalanga, when he was taking a short cut. Their arrests came after the shocking events depicted on a YouTube clip were circulated.
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/man-forced-into-coffin-saw-video-on-social-media-20161117
According to those present at his speech, EFF members claimed that Zuma did not have the right to address the special "people's Parliament", and walked out.
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/coffin-case-painful-despicable-zuma-20161118
