Ex-Ottawan slain in South Africa
Resort owner had long career as an engineer
By Zev Singer , The Ottawa Citizen
March 5, 2010
  The Killing Fields: Farm Attacks in South Africa: “A roadside memorial made by farmers, near Machado, Limpopo.” -- [Caroline Suzman: Gallery] |
A Canadian living in South Africa has been murdered in his home. But homicide is so common there, says his son, that he holds out no hope the crime will ever be solved.
Ron Smith, 70, who grew up in Ottawa, was found tied to a chair at his house near Bela Bela, 170 kilometres north of Johannesburg, on Monday. He’d been shot in the leg and was left to bleed to death, said his son, Jonathan Smith.
“Your life is not worth more than a cellphone,” he said. “And that’s exactly what they took from my father. They took a cellphone and a laptop.”
South Africa has one of the world’s highest homicide rates, with 37 murders per 100,000 people each year — nearly 20 times the rate in Canada. More than 18,000 people are murdered there every year.
Ron Smith, who graduated from Carleton University in 1961, was a civil engineer specializing in transportation. He followed in the footsteps of his father, George Smith, who served as federal director of airport construction, designing many of the airports in Canada before retiring in 1965. Ron Smith, as an employee of De Leuw Cather, was sent early in his career to South Africa, where he would spend most of his life.
During almost five decades there, he oversaw many infrastructure planning projects, including the national government precinct in central Pretoria. During his career, he also worked on the creation of clean water and sewage systems for poor villages.
In recent years, he owned and lived on a small “luxury bush-camp resort” that he built and his wife, Suzanne, operated. With room for about 12 guests, it catered to tourists, taking them to nearby wildlife parks.
Less than two months ago, Suzanne Smith died of cancer, and her husband was planning to leave. He wanted to move back to Canada and spend the winters in California where his two older brothers live, his son said.
Jonathan Smith said his father was very worried about safety. A number of other property owners in the area were murdered in recent months and such attacks are a problem across the country. For Smith, it was just a matter of selling the “game farm,” as the property is called in South Africa.
“Most of his money was invested into the farm and he couldn’t retire without selling the farm,” his son said. “He just didn’t get out on time.”
Jonathan Smith, 37, who grew up in South Africa but moved to Halifax in 2008, said he left the country because it has become too dangerous.
Jonathan Smith said officials with Foreign Affairs and International Trade are trying to get more information for him.
“Foreign Affairs will make sure this one is not swept under the rug like so many others (in South Africa).”
The department’s website warns travellers to South Africa to be extremely careful there.
“Canadians should be aware that South Africa has a very high level of serious crime,” the site says. “Violent crimes, including rape and murder, routinely occur.”
Jonathan Smith said that his father, who worked on projects with the African National Congress before the fall of apartheid, was very supportive of the dismantling of the segregated, white-ruled political system and worked hard to improve the country. What happened to him was “horrific,” he said.
“He was basically tortured and murdered. He’s five-six and 70 years old.”
Smith said he will try to collect all the information he can about his father’s death, but he has low expectations that anything will ever come of the investigation.
“A lot of this is just a bigger problem, the madness of South Africa, which I don’t think many Canadians realize.”
» » » » [Ottowa Citizen]
Nog 'n moord ruk Limpopo
2010-03-02 23:45
Marietie Louw-Carstens, Beeld
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In die derde moord op die Limpopo-platteland binne vier dae is ’n bejaarde man van Bela-Bela (Warmbad) se lyk gister op ’n hoewe buite die dorp gevind.
Die polisie het gisteroggend op mnr. Ron Smith (70) se lyk afgekom op sy bed in ’n rondawel op ’n hoewe in die Droogekloof-gebied sowat 15km op die pad na Thabazimbi.
Supt. Ronel Otto, provinsiale polisiewoordvoerder, het gesê Smith se hande was aan die bed se kopstuk vasgebind. Hy het ’n skietwond in die linkerknie gehad.
Otto het gesê dit lyk of die moordenaar(s) by ’n venster ingekom het.
Van Smith se familie wat in Benoni aan die Oos-Rand woon, het bekommerd geraak toe hulle hom nie in die hande kon kry nie. Hulle het gisteroggend die Bela-Bela-polisie gebel. Smith is vermoedelik tussen Sondag 20:00 en eergisteroggend vermoor.
Otto het gesê dit is onduidelik of iets uit die rondawel gesteel is.
Die moord kom kort ná twee gru-moorde die naweek in Limpopo.
Mnr. Etienne Cammaerts (61) is Vrydag op sy plaas in die Lephalale (Ellisras)-distrik keelaf gesny.
Mnr. Paul Dunn (49), plaasbestuurder van Constantia Produkte, ’n sitrusplaas in die Letsitele-gebied, is Saterdag in die vroeë oggendure doodgeskiet.
Twee mans verskyn vandag in die Mokopane (Potgietersrus)-landdroshof weens die moord op Cammaerts, ’n Belg.
Otto het gesê ’n 29-jarige man en sy 20-jarige makker is eergister laat in die Villa Nora-gebied weens dié moord aangekeer. Niks is van Cammaerts gesteel nie. Sy lyk is op ’n verlate grondpad naby ’n waterpan op die plaas gekry.
Intussen moet Dunn se stiefseun, Ruan (16), berading ontvang nadat hy op sy bebloede lyk afgekom het.
Mev. Tanya Dunn het gister gesê haar seun is uiters geskok.
Sy en Ruan het Vrydagaand in die nabygeleë Tzaneen oorgeslaap. Hulle is Saterdagoggend na die plaas. “Ek bel gewoonlik vir Paul om die hek oop te maak, maar hy het nie geantwoord nie,” het mev. Dunn gesê.
Sy het by die huis ook die toeter herhaaldelik gedruk, maar daar was geen antwoord nie. Ruan het by die kombuisvenster ingekyk en sy stiefpa se lyk op die vloer sien lê.
“Hy (Ruan) het verskriklik geskree. Ek het gaan kyk en hom daar sien lê?.?.?.?ek was so geskok,” het mev. Dunn gesê.
“Baie mense is nou kwaad en wil wapens opneem, maar wat sal dit help? Dit gaan nie my man terugbring nie,” het mev. Dunn gesê.
Vyf mense is in Februarie op plase in Limpopo vermoor. Mnr. Kallie Kriel, uitvoerende hoof van die burgerregte-inisiatief AfriForum, het gister gesê hulle het by Fifa beswaar gemaak omdat die WB 2010-stadion in Polokwane (Pietersburg) na Peter Mokaba genoem is. Mokaba was berug om sy slagspreuk “Kill the Boer, kill the farmer”.
“Mokaba was ’n aanstigter tot moord op plaasboere.
Nadat sy slagspreuk berug geword het, is meer as 2 000 mense op plase in Suid-Afrika vermoor. Ons is seker Fifa sal nie toelaat dat ’n sokkerstadion na Adolf Hitler genoem word nie. Dit is ’n klap in die gesig van die naasbestaandes van duisende slagoffers van plaasmoorde,” het Kriel gesê
» » » » [Beeld]
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