AfriForum Slammed for Representing Bergview College Prinicpal Amid Rape Saga

• South Africans blasted advocacy group AfriForum for representing Bergview College principal
• In a letter AfriForum sent to the Matatiele Police Station dated on 17 February 2025, it denounced the South African Police Service's request of a sample from Pieterse after a little girl was raped last year
• Netizens found his refusal to provide a DNA sample suspicious, and many roasted AfriForum for representing him

With nine years’ experience, Tebogo Mokwena, a current affairs writer for Briefly News, provided insights into the criminal justice system, crime statistics and high-profile cases in South Africa at Daily Sun.

MATATIELE, EASTERN CAPE — South Africans questioned why the principal of Bergview College refused to provide the South African Police Service a buccal sample of his DNA. This was after a seven year-old girl was raped on the Eastern Cape school's premises in October 2024.

What did Afriforum say?

AfriForum's Barry Bateman posted a statement from his @barrybateman X account. The statement, from AfriForum's Private Prosecution Unit, denied that it was protecting a suspected rapist. He also said that the South African Police Service (SAPS) did not consider him a rape suspect in the case.

AfriForum also slammed the investigating officer for requesting a DNA sample from Pieterse. It stressed that he had no contact with the girl and neither is there evidence that the rape took place on school grounds. The lobby group further said that the investigating officer's DNA sample request was an abuse of process. He nevertheless consented to give a DNA sample.

Read the X statement here:

Recently, AfriForum came out guns blazing after the Constitutional Court ruled that the Kill the Boer chant was not hate speech and was protected by the country's laws on the freedom of expression. It accused the judges of using political ideologies to influence the ruling.

What did South Africans say?

South Africans weighed in on AfriForum and the principal's initial refusal to provide a sample.

Warren Robertson said:

"The truth is, he is now caught up in this. Denying the sample is the only thing that makes him look guilty. All men round this girl should be regarded as suspectssnd the innocentshould rush to provide there samples snd prove their innocence, nd help the police catch the rapist."

Malome said:

"The same Afriforum that said America must sanction us to only score an own goal by disrupting AGOA."

Heidi said:

"If he's innocent, the DNA test should for sure exonerate him. That is due process. Nothing special is going on here. He hasn't been given a special treatment."

Princy Mthombeni said:

"So you're clearing the suspect just because you trust him so much? He's the principal — he must take responsibility for what happened at his school and cooperate with the police to clear his name."

Wonderful said:

"If he's not guilty, the best way to clear his name is to subject himself to a test. The fact that he is running away suggests that he knows more than he is willing to tell."

President Cyril Ramaphosa disappointed with AfriForum

In a related article, Briefly News reported that President Cyril Ramaphosa was unimpressed with AfriForum and Solidarity. He accused them of badmouthing South Africa.

He said the two organisations were seeking to spread racist statements about their own country. He also said that it was up to the National Prosecuting Authority to determine whether their actions were considered acts of treason.

Source: Briefly News