So concerned is it, that a complaint has been lodged with the SA Human Rights Commission which has, in turn, written to President Cyril Ramaphosa about the issue. The land rights movement says it has been facing repression from the state since 2009 over the killings of its activists for speaking out against corruption. According to one member of the movement, Thapelo Mohapi, of the 24 activists killed over the past 14 years, last year alone saw four murdered. Ayanda Ngila, who was the deputy chair of the eKhenana Commune, was killed in March last year, before another activist, Nokuthula Mabaso, chair of the women's league, was killed outside her house in the same month. "Lindokuhle Mnguni, the chair of the commune, was also assassinated in August last year, also in his house where he was with his partner, who sustained injuries from three bullets fired at her. "Siyabonga Manqele was another one of our activists who was killed when police opened fire during a community raid in the eNkanini informal settlement," said Mohapi. Most of the assassinations, according to Mohapi, have been carried out in KZN. "We are being killed because the ANC sees our movement of the impoverished as a threat and we are killed because we expose corruption," Mohapi charged. He said they are very concerned about the situation, especially ahead of next year's muchanticipated general election, with "the ANC losing ground in KZN".

The South African Human Rights Commission SAHRC has since written to President Cyril Ramaphosa about the plight of the movement. It added that "a highlevel strategic intervention is necessary to alleviate the plight of the movement". SAHRC's acting manager in KZN Pavershee Padayachee said the commission wanted the president to get the crime prevention and security cluster to investigate the assassinations and the failure by the police to apprehend assassins. The SAHRC was also concerned about "delays in prosecuting matters that are currently before the criminal courts including the alleged role of politicians." Meanwhile, the South African Local Government Association Salga in KZN has called on members of the public to come forward with information that could lead to the arrest of people involved in the killings of ward councillors. In recent incidents, a proportional representative councillor for the African Christian Democratic Party was tragically shot and killed while delivering a sermon to his congregants at his church in eNseleni, Richards Bay, last Tuesday.

In less than a week, another councillor from the Inkatha Freedom Party from the uMkhanyakude district was also assassinated. According to KZN Salga chair Thami Ntuli, the escalating number of political killings targeting councillors, particularly in the northern parts ofKZN, has instilled fear and anxiety among public representatives. "The safety and security of councillors must be prioritised, and we expect that every effort will be made to expedite all outstanding threat analyses where councillors have reported incidents of intimidation or threats," Ntuli added. Statistics involving ward councillors who have died in KZN over the past 10 months: 0, 17 assassinations. 0. 3 motor accidents. 11, 17 natural causes. 2 suicides. Political and human rights activist Prof Mary de Haas, who has been monitoring political violence in KZN, said with the elections next year, activists may be at risk of further violence depending on the political context of areas they are in, but stressed that politicians are also vulnerable. Commenting on calls for Ramaphosa's intervention, De Haas said there is no harm in asking but questioned why Ramaphosa never intervened when the lives of whistleblowers Thabiso Zulu and Patricia Mashale were at risk, despite many pleas sent to him personally.

Source: The Citizen