The South African National Civic Organisation (Sanco) on Thursday called for the safety of Ermelo farmers “to be intensified and closely monitored” following an SMS “giving them an ultimatum to vacate their land or be forcefully removed”.

“We hope that the investigation that police are conducting will leave no stone unturned and unmask those behind the atrocious SMS‚” Sanco spokesperson Jabu Mahlangu said.

“Racist threats of this nature have no place in our constitutional democracy.”

Mahlangu quoted a News24 report in which an Ermelo police spokesperson said “two cases of intimidation had been opened over the alarming messages” and that the SMS read: “Vacate your land whyte [sic] man or we will forse [sic] you. Take your wife and children away. We will visit them.”

He said that “we need to reclaim the spirit of reconciliation‚ nation-building and social cohesion that characterise our rainbow nation”‚ but also said Sanco had “not ruled out the possibility that the SMS could be part of an election campaign strategy by right-wingers”.

They “might‚ as with previous elections‚ be resorting to politics of fear to mobilise support ahead of the August 3 local government elections”‚ Mahlangu added.

“Intimidation and or provocation by faceless cowards will only serve to stoke the fires of ‘die swart gevaar’ and racial hatred within farming communities.”