December 8th, 2025
The United South Africa Movement (TUSAM) wishes to express its deepest condolences to the wife, children, family and friends of murdered whistle-blower Marius van der Merwe. We salute the courage of Marius van der Merwe in testifying in front of the Madlanga commission and making bone-chilling allegations of criminal activity in the heart of the security apparatus of the state. It is now all too clear to South Africans, if anyone still had doubts, that the Madlanga commission is lifting the veil on just how deep the rot goes in our country, and that powerful figures will not hesitate to commit yet more crimes against South Africa rather than be exposed.
Beyond the immediate shock and dismay that yet another whistleblower had to pay with his life for exposing alleged criminality in the heart of the state, TUSAM is alarmed by the lack of empathy from various government figures and the tepid official statements that have been made. The fact that the Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshaveni and the Minister of Justice, Mmamaloko Kubayi, resorted to victim blaming by stating that van der Merwe declined witness protection measures, or that the media was to blame for exposing his identity, is as shameless as it is inappropriate. It is also sadly revealing of the frame of mind of some of the highest office bearers in the country.
After the murder of Babita Deokaran in 2021, TUSAM was hoping that the tide had finally turned and that the extreme bravery and courage of whistleblowers exposing criminality involving the state apparatus would be finally recognised. Sadly, many more whistleblowers have been murdered since and instead, we see that truth tellers are being brazenly and shamelessly silenced. The message to others is clear and chilling: Stay quiet, or pay the ultimate price. These are the methods of mobs, gangsters and outlaws. They cannot be allowed to win.
Accountability is not an abstract notion. It means that people, no matter what positions they may hold, are equal before the law and that criminal actions should have consequences. It is inconceivable that it is the people who are brave enough to speak up who live in fear, rather than the ones stealing from South Africans and abusing their positions.
We call upon the authorities to do their jobs, and specifically:
- The South African Police Service (SAPS) and other law enforcement agencies need to immediately deploy sufficient resources to track down and arrest Marius Van der Merwe’s murderers and those who ordered the murder;
- The Minister of Justice and Minister in the Presidency need to immediately take all the necessary measures to protect the lives of witnesses and whistleblowers who come forward in the Madlanga commission and make clear public statements to that effect.
It is also clear that much deeper reforms of our broken criminal justice system will be needed in the longer term to ensure accountability. TUSAM hopes to see the work of the Madlanga Commission concluded with forceful recommendations on the way forward, including the actual prosecution of people accused of wrongdoing. The murder of van der Merwe is a clear indication that powerful people are feeling threatened by the Commission and seek to control its outcomes. We cannot afford for the Madlanga Commission to become a substitute for real accountability.
Our whistleblowers have names. They include Babita Deokaran, Mpho Mafole, Jimmy Mohlala, Moss Phakoe, Thomas and Murray Cloete, Lt-Col Frans Mathipa, Bouwer van Niekerk and far too many others who lost their lives in defence of the rule of law and justice in South Africa.
May the murder of Marius van der Merwe not have been in vain. South Africans need to draw a line. We owe it to him and his fellow whistleblowers.