/ 25 May 1990

Blast rocks Boer war house

An explosion rocked the historic Melrose House in Pretoria at 9.30pm on Wednesday night and the perpetrators left one clue behind- Vierkleur flag flying from one of the two flagpoles in the garden. No-one was injured in the explosion which caused extensive damage to the building. 

The Treaty of Vereeniging was signed here in 1902 when the Boer Republics surrendered at the end of the Anglo Boer war. Melrose House is seen as a symbol of Boer humiliation. 

The two flagpoles are used for the South African and the Pretoria municipal flags. Various rightwing movements use the Vierkleur- the original Transvaal Republic’s flag – as a symbol. No-one has been arrested.

This article originally appeared in the Weekly Mail.

 

M&G Newspaper