The mother of a 15 year old murder suspect said Monday that her son struck a notorious white supremacist leader after the farmer refused to pay him, a slaying that heightens racial tensions as South Africa prepares to host the World Cup. Ewing Terreblanche, 69, was the leader of the far-right Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging movement. She said she spoke to the teenager at Ventersdorp police station on Saturday after he turned himself in. The boy was not alone, and his 28 year old accomplice had also turned himself in.  The suspects continue to remain anonymous, due to a law in South Africa that refuses to identify accused minors without the signature of a judge. Terreblanche’s movement has threatened to march on the police station if the names are not released.

Police officers are attempting to appear composed in interviews due to the heavy atmosphere surrounding South Africa. As the first African Nation to host the World Cup, only 10 weeks away, police officials hope to resolve the issue before the games enter the country.

While the killing is being considered by the mother of the accused to be minimal at best, the authorities in South Africa feel otherwise. Yes, the dispute was over money payments and striking someone with an apparent iron rod is considered normal, the slaying of Terreblanche comes after brutal and long racially charged fighting in South Africa. The newly democratic and urban guerilla warfare based African National Congress only recently took control, and the racially driven white regime, of which Terreblanche was a leader, continue to drive up violence. Terreblanche’s death can only spell disaster amongst the races in South Africa. Secretary General Andre Visagie considers the death an “act of war by blacks against whites” and warns visiting nations of impending danger.