Karel Thou

Karel Thou (d.o.b. unknown - 1987)

Brief overview:

Karel was killed after the truck he was transporting ten others in hit a landmine near Messina in early May 1987.

Extract from the Politics Web Report

"On 29th March 1987 four passengers – including two Motha brothers and a Mrs Phikhiti - were killed when their vehicle detonated a landmine in the Lebombo mountains near Barberton. Siphiwe Nyanda, Solly Shoke, and Dick Mkhonto applied for and were granted amnesty in 2000 for these killings, as well as that of Lance-Corporal Le Roux. In early May 1987 Karel Thou was killed after the truck he was transporting ten others in, hit a landmine near Messina."

"During the Dakar meeting in Senegal in July 1987 between an ANC delegation, led by Thabo Mbeki, and an IDASA delegation made up of many leading Afrikaner intellectuals, led by Frederik van Zyl Slabbert, one of the issues raised was the ANC’s policy of taking the war into the white areas."

"Radio Freedom broadcast a comment by Hani explaining MK’s approach on this matter. He said that while white civilians would not be directly targeted white farmers would continue to be. As he put it: “We mean that we must go for the white personnel which is responsible for the repression of our people, for those who have been manning the instrument of repression, for the white policemen, for the white members of the SADF, for those who are in the reservists and in the commando groups. We must go for installations in the white areas. We are already going for the farmers, because the farmers are an important element of the SADF.”

Brief Biography:

• Other Victims/Family
• Funeral/Memorial
• The Farm/Smallholding
• The Region (Land disputes, other incidents etc.)

Attack Details:

• Date and time of attack
• Weapons
• Items Stolen
• Investigative officer/SAPS Case No:
• Torture, Gratuitous violence
• Indications of Hate Crime? Threats etc.

Perpetrator details:

• Number and Descriptions
• Arrests
• Name/s and age/s of Perpetrator/s
• Country of origin of Perpetrator/s
• Trial/Conviction

Additional Biographical Information:

Links to Media articles:

• https://archive.is/9ury0
• https://archive.is/CwdqE