AS hundreds of uniformed and armed Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging members and thousands of right-wingers thronged Ventersdorp, rumours began to do the rounds that the death of Eugene Terre'Blanche might not have been due to a wage dispute.

With sources close to the investigation reporting that the murdered AWB leader's body had been found with his pants around his knees and a used condom on the floor, there has been speculation that he may have been involved in a sexual relationship with one of the two men, Chris Mahlangu, 27, and a 15-year-old, who are suspected of his murder.

This will be the argument put forward by lawyers for the two when they appear in court next week for a bail application.

Investigators placed the condom and its contents in a crime kit, which has been sent to the forensic unit in Pretoria for analysis.

Other exhibits include a panga and an iron rod, allegedly used to kill the right-wing leader at his Ventersdorp farm last weekend.

Initial reports immediately after Terre'Blanche's murder had suggested the motive was non-payment of wages.

Police opened a docket of housebreaking with the intent to commit robbery and armed robbery with aggravating circumstances, murder, and attempted robbery.

But on Tuesday, the prosecution, to the surprise of the defence, introduced a further charge - crimen injuria - alleging that when the body of Terre'Blanche had been found, detectives found his pants had been pulled to his knees exposing his genitals.

Now when the suspects appear in the Ventersdorp Magistrate's Court on Wednesday, lawyers are expected to argue that Terre'Blanche had a sexual relationship with his alleged killers.

Prominent Johannesburg lawyer Zola Majavu, who represents the minor, would neither confirm nor deny this. He did, however, confirm that he would apply for bail for his client if the State wanted to prosecute him under the new Child Justice Act.

Last night Mthunzi Mhaga, National Prosecuting Authority spokesman, said prosecutors would not comment further on the charge of crimen injuria.

"We've said enough. And that is that (the charge) is because Mr Terre'Blanche's pants were pulled down to his knees and his private parts were showing...," Mhaga said.

When newly elected AWB leader Steyn van Ronge was asked if he was aware of the discovery of a used condom, he said: "I can't comment on that." He then said he was not aware of it. "If evidence is presented to support that I will make a comment."

Terre'Blanche had reportedly been seen with his alleged killers at a local bottle store on the morning of his death. Beeld reported that he had bought whisky and several bottles of cider.

Yesterday, at the AWB leader's funeral, the group's leadership had its hands full preventing its gun-wielding supporters from intimidating black journalists, who were not allowed inside the Afrikaner Protestant Church.

Police watched over the tense crowd, who encircled the church and spilled out onto the streets, clad in AWB regalia, waving their Vierkleur and the old South African flag.

Several renewed their calls for war. "We feel hatred against blacks. We want revenge in the legal way for our own Volkstaat, but in our heart we want war," said Neels Marais, a farmer from Namibia.

"We have bombs. We will bomb their taxis. We have meetings in the pipeline," he claimed. "We can't trust the ANC because they're killing us."

Dominee Ferdie Devenier, who led the service, described Terre'Blanche as a leader of the Afrikaner volk. "If the world ever doubted that he was a leader for us, that doubt has been taken away today." He urged the congregation to adhere to Christianity as that was how their Volkstaat would be realised.

Last night relations between black and white in the town remained tense. Farmworkers who watched the long funeral procession that brought traffic to a standstill were subjected to racial epithets by the passing occupants.

"We are scared," said farmworker Simon Tlali. "We don't feel safe here anymore. We wish police could patrol our area more often because we don't know what might happen at night."

A waitress described how AWB members had warned her and her black colleagues to leave the town before midnight last night.

In the township of Tshing, where one of the suspects lives, Cosatu advised residents to remain in their homes.

A resident, Hendrik Ntlatlane, said he was concerned about the safety of his daughter who attended primary school in the town. "Most of the pupils at that school are black. I don't know what is going to happen to them when they report for school on Monday."

By IOL