05 Oct 2011The United South African Agricultural Association (USAAA) has called upon Western Cape agriculture minister Gerrit van Rensburg to establish an independent commission to investigate alleged human rights abuses on farms in the province.
This follows allegations of farm worker abuse on wine and fruit farms in Western Cape, documented in a recently published Human Rights Watch report.
During her visit to 2011 Agri Mega Week in Bredasdorp, agriculture minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson expressed concern about the reaction to these allegations, noting that several individuals were questioning the methodology used by the report’s researchers rather than condemning the abuse by certain farmers.
http://www.farmersweekly.co.za/index.php?p[IGcms_nodes][IGcms_nodesUID]=2b8030fe195159738aef018f08da92e6
