Police questioned the man from Knysna in 2007 when the picture first surfaced. 
 
 Hawks spokesman Colonel McIntosh Polela said yesterday that Western Cape police contacted him yesterday morning after reading a Sunday Times report which stated that the photograph featured on the profile of a Facebook user who called himself "Eugene Terrorblanche". 
 
 "I was told that the photograph came to light in 2007 and that it was investigated. The man was taken in for questioning. 
 
 "He told police that the child was alive and that he paid the child to pose." 
 
 Polela was unable to confirm the status of the 2007 investigation. 
 
 "The police report is expected to be sent to me on Monday morning," he said. 
 
 He added that an investigation will have to determine why the photograph resurfaced four years later. 
 
 "That picture speaks volumes and is a big worry. We have to understand what happened in the previous investigation." 
 
 Polela did not know if the child were alive. 
 
 "I got the impression that the man told the police that the child was alive. I don't know how far the police went to find out if the child was indeed alive. I will have to read the report," he said. 
 
 The police yesterday emphasised that the photograph should not raise "racial connotations" but instead should focus on the murder of a child. 
 
 "Whether the child was white or black, the photograph is still a big concern because it depicts the murder of a child," said Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa's spokesman, Zweli Mnisi. 
 
 Yesterday, Talk Radio 702 reporter Mandy Wiener said the radio station's news team exposed the picture after it appeared on a Facebook page called "Ek laaik nie 'n houtkop nie so what" (I don't like a fool, so what). 
 
 Ray Hartley, editor of the Sunday Times (sister publication of The Times) said: "If this is the same picture that was reported on earlier as being doctored, it is comforting to know that the child was not physically harmed. The fact remains that a very sick individual has this picture posted on his Facebook profile in 2011 along with a string of extremely racist remarks. 
 
 "The police are investigating this Facebook racist, who has concealed his identity, for very good reason and we believe the public should assist [them]." 
 
 The national director of public prosecutions, Menzi Simelane, tweeted: "Race crime legislation is needed in SA" and DA leader Helen Zille said she was horrified by the picture. 
 
 "Whether or not the picture is genuine, it represents a scene of extreme violence perpetrated against a child by a man. The intention is to evoke racial hatred and polarisation," she said. 
 
 By yesterday afternoon, 25 Facebook users had removed themselves from Terrorblanche's contact list after authorities suggested that anyone who viewed the picture and failed to report it could face prosecution. 
 
 Two Facebook groups, one calling for the arrest of Terrorblanche's friends and another protesting against him, grew quickly to more than 300 supporters yesterday. 
 
 White Facebook users expressed fear that the picture would give rise to violence against them, whereas black users said they were shocked that the profile had not been deleted. ||||| The Hawks have launched an investigation into an image on Facebook in which a white man with a rifle poses over the apparently lifeless body of a black child - like a hunter celebrating his kill. 
 
 The undated picture is on the social networking site in the profile of a user called "Eugene Terrorblanche", a play on the name of the murdered leader of the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB). As of yesterday, "Terrorblanche" had 590 "friends". 
 
 While it is not known if the photograph is genuine or has been manipulated, a child protection charity has expressed concern for the well being of the youngster. 
 
 The search is now on for the person or persons responsible for the picture, for whoever created the user profile and for those who have seen the photograph but failed to report it. 
 
 The authorities have suggested that everyone party to the posting - including those who have seen the picture - could face prosecution and, if convicted, a jail sentence. 
 
 This is regardless of whether the picture is faked. 
 
 Minister of Police Nathi Mthethwa's spokesman, Zweli Mnisi, said his boss had ordered an "immediate investigation" and called on the man in the picture - or anyone who recognised him - to come forward to assist in the probe. 
 
 Mnisi said: "If, indeed, it reflects a real incident, those responsible must be severely punished." 
 
 The investigation was sparked when the Sunday Times presented the link to the site to the authorities. 
 
 Child advocacy groups said the production and dissemination of the picture violated several laws, including the Children's Act, the Films and Publications Act and the Criminal Procedure Act. 
 
 Hawks spokesman Colonel McIntosh Polela said "no words can describe the disgust I'm feeling", while Kidz Clinics advocacy manager Germaine Vogel called the picture "abominable". 
 
 The Minister of Social Development, Bathabile Dlamini, yesterday slammed the photograph, saying that any adult threatening a child must be condemned. 
 
 The Facebook user, who has few personal details in his profile, claimed to have attended school in Krugersdorp, west of Johannesburg, and that he was "self-employed". 
 
 "Terrorblanche" previously went under the name "AWB Wit Wolf". 
 
 When using that alias, he said he was in the business of selling stun guns and pepper spray. 
 
 HisFacebook friends include a mechanic from the West Rand, a supermarket manager from Boksburg on the East Rand, a housewife from Upington in the Northern Cape and a teacher from Edenvale, east of Johannesburg. 
 
 The picture was put on Facebook on June 24 last year - and so far not one of the user's "friends" has posted a comment condemning it. 
 
 The director of Women + Men Against Child Abuse, Miranda Jordan, said she found it "incredibly disturbing" not knowing whether the child in the picture was hurt or dead. 
 
 "I couldn't believe what I was seeing ... this is sickening and disgusting. Is this child hurt? Is he dead? Who would take this kind of picture? 
 
 "This hate image incites racism that almost all South Africans have fought so hard to eradicate," shesaid. 
 
 Those who commented favourably on the image could be charged and held accountable, she said. 
 
 "Anyone living in South Africa who has viewed this image of an abused child and has not reported it can be charged under the Children's Act 38 of 2005, which stipulates that, as a witness to the abuse of a child, you must report it to your nearest police station." 
 
 Experts said it would be difficult to confirm the photo's authenticity, but the authorities were hopeful someone would recognise the adult in the image. 
 
 Alternatively, they hope that the man (if he is also an unsuspecting victim) or friends who know the identify of the Facebook user will come forward with information. 
 
 South Africa has not prosecuted anyone for posting offensive material on Facebook, but law-enforcement agencies in the US are increasingly obtaining warrants to get users' details. 
 
 They can even request or subpoena information from Facebook. 
 
 Vogel of Kidz Clinics said that, in terms of South African law, the person in the picture could be charged with murder, grievous bodily harm or, in terms of the Children's Act, with the harm or ill-treatment of a child. 
 
 "Once an image is posted on the internet, it can never be deleted. So, for example, this hate image will be linked to this young man and this child for the rest of their lives. This is a gross violation of this child's well-being and privacy," said Vogel. 
 
 A police computer expert said an investigation of this nature would determine, among other things, if the child was harmed in the making of the image. 
 
 "If the picture has been photoshopped, those responsible for producing such an image can also be charged for child abuse," he said. 
 
 Experts on children's rights agreed that the Children's Act made it a crime to expose a child to behaviour that might harm him or her psychologically or emotionally. 
 
 Meanwhile, Polela said the person responsible for the picture and those who posted it on a social networking site were spreading "hate speech". 
 
 "As you would probably expect, there are many South Africans who will feel deeply offended by this. I am," he said. 
 
 Web and digital media lawyer Paul Jacobson said the first step would be to identify the man in the picture. 
 
 But he said it was unfair to single out social media networks for the racist material, saying "these people were like this before Facebook". 
 
 Police could also contact the social network for help. "This is a clear violation of Facebook's policies and, if put under enough pressure, I am certain (they) will react and assist investigations," Jacobson said. 
 
 Local internet service providers could be forced to help track down the user. "It is definitely in the public interest," Jacobson said. 
 
 - swartw@sundaytimes.co.za
– A 4-year-old racist photo on Facebook, ostensibly of a white hunter standing over a dead 3-year-old black boy, has ignited a media frenzy following a report by South Africa's Sunday Times. Although the pic was quickly found to be an fake—the "hunter" paid the boy to pose with him—and was investigated by authorities four years ago, police say they are launching a new investigation to find the Facebook user who re-posted the old pic, "Eugene Terrorblanche." The name plays off that of the murdered leader of white supremacist group Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging "The fact remains that a very sick individual has this picture posted on his Facebook profile in 2011 along with a string of extremely racist remarks," wrote the Times' editor. As of yesterday, 25 people who were on the man's contact list had removed themselves, and 300 others had joined two Facebook groups protesting the account. "Whether or not the picture is genuine, it represents a scene of extreme violence perpetrated against a child by a man. The intention is to evoke racial hatred and polarization," said the South African prosecutor, who called for anti-hate legislation.