One Man’s Walk Against Killings in SA

The idea was David Nyawo’s. Walk from Mbombela to Pretoria to protest killing in South Africa. First it was the killings of white farmers and policemen, but then it grew from there to xenophobic killings, and the slaughter of rhino and other wildlife.

Nyawo, a teacher near White River, said at the start of his 350-kilometre walk today that he was taking a stand against the crimes against humanity and animals.

“When you are a child in a rural area, you are friends with everyone,” he told the Lowvelder newspaper. “Skin colour makes no difference. It is only when we get older that, for some odd reason, we start hating each other.”

Nyawo received support from members of the public and companies from the moment he sent out word of his walk. At Barberton, a group of 20 cyclists will join him. Others asked if they could walk with him. One of them was Ian Venter (pictured above), and another was Jaco Kloppers of Mpumalanga Animal Crime Watch.

Yet another was Alex Leach from Kwa-Zulu Natal. He said that when he saw what Nyawo planned to do, he called and asked if he could also walk.

 “I’m here supporting him in the plight for the rhino, for xenophobia, for farm killings, police killings. Someone has got to do something about it. It’s got to stop,” he said.

The group plans to reach the Union Buildings in Pretoria by Thursday morning, where they intend to hand over a memorandum to the government.