In a case that has divided many in South Africa, two farm workers had their final day in court for the death of White supremacist leader Eugene Terre’Blanche. Chris Mahlangu, 29 and Patrick Ndlovu, 18 were charged with murder and aggravated robbery after Terre’Blanche was found beaten to death with a steel pipe in April 2010. The controversy surrounding the leader’s death is an amalgamation of tossed evidence, rumors of sodomy, and deep-rooted racial tension in complex nation.
On Tuesday, Mahlangu was found guilty of murder, while Ndlovu was acquitted, largely because of lack of evidence and his young age at the time of the crime. Members of Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (Afrikaner Resistance Movement – AWB)— the pro-white militant organization Terre’Blanche founded during apartheid— protested outside the courtroom in their military garb. According to the BBC, the local Black community in the town of Ventersdorp called Mahlangu a "hero" for his alleged role in the killing. The AWF claims this is indicative of the violence faced by White farmers in South Africa more and more every year.
