VENTERSDORP, South Africa - A trial has begun for two black farmworkers accused of killing a South African white supremacist in an alcohol-fueled dispute over money.
Lawyer Norman Arendse opened his defence Monday by saying witnesses were afraid to testify about "appalling" conditions for workers on Eugene Terreblanche's farm. Arendse's 16-year-old client, who cannot be named because of his youth, and an adult co-accused pleaded not guilty.
Terreblanche co-founded a group that seeks an all-white republic within South Africa. He had faded into obscurity before his April, 2010 death.
A few white supremacists gathered outside the courthouse in Ventersdorp, northwest of Johannesburg, as the trial began. The atmosphere was not as tense as in the days after the killing.
