South African Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius appears at Magistrate Court in Pretoria, South Africa, on Tuesday, February 19. He's charged with premeditated murder in the death of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp.
(CNN) -- The dozens of weapons a newspaper says the family of Oscar Pistorius owns are only for "sport and hunting," the family says.
The family, in a statement released Tuesday, sought to distance itself from Henke Pistorius, Oscar's father, who said that some of the guns are for protection from crime -- protection he said the African National Congress government is not providing.
The family's statement also was at odds with one by Oscar Pistorius, who told the magistrate who granted him bond that he kept the handgun that killed his girlfriend at his bed because he's "been a victim of violence and of burglaries."
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The "Pistorius family own weapons purely for sport and hunting purposes," the Olympic icon's family said in the statement provided by a spokesman.
Beeld, an Afrikaans language newspaper, has reported the Pistorius family owns 55 weapons -- between his father, grandfather and two uncles -- not counting Oscar's six guns.
The family's statement came in response to a controversy triggered when Henke Pistorius defended the arsenal by telling a UK newspaper that white South Africans need guns for self-defense because the ANC, which gained control in 1994 with the collapse of South Africa's apartheid system, does a poor job of protecting them.
"Some of the guns are for hunting and some are for protection, the hand guns," Henke Pistorius is quoted as telling a Telegraph reporter. "It speaks to the ANC government -- look at white crime levels, why protection is so poor in this country, it's an aspect of our society."
While he said he's never used any of his four firearms -- two rifles and two handguns -- for self-defense, "that doesn't mean I haven't been hijacked, attacked."
"As a family, we value life much too much to produce guns at every opportunity we can use them," Henke Pistorius told the Telegraph. "I have been in positions where I can use a gun but we have been brought up in a way that we value the lives of others very highly."
The ANC immediately attacked Henke Pistorius, saying his statement was not only "devoid of truth, it is also racist."
"It is sad that he has chosen to politicize a tragic incident that is still fresh in the minds of those affected and the public," ANC spokesman Jackson Mthembu said. "This tragic incident has affected two families that are still trying to come to terms with what happened and this latest racist slur is not assisting these families. We think it is ill-advisable for anyone to start apportioning undue blame."
Oscar Pistorius is charged with premeditated murder in the death of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp. Prosecutors say the Olympian killed Steenkamp, 29, after a heated argument in the early morning hours of Valentine's Day.
The double-amputee sprinter, known as the "Blade Runner," submitted a sworn affidavit to the judge considering his bail request last month saying he kept a 9 mm pistol "underneath my bed when I went to bed at night" because he was "acutely aware of violent crime being committed by intruders entering homes with a view to commit crime, including violent crime."
"I have received death threats before," the affidavit said. "I have also been a victim of violence and of burglaries before."
The magistrate granted bail, allowing Pistorius to go free eight days after the shooting.
The Pistorius family, which hired a "reputation management" firm to help with media relations, issued a statement Monday saying, "Oscar and the rest of the Pistorius family distances itself" from Henke Pistorius' comments.
"Henke's interview with the newspaper was unapproved by our media liaison team," family spokesman Arnold Pistorius, Henke's brother, said. "The comment doesn't represent the views of Oscar or the rest of the Pistorius family."
Another political party -- the Young Communist League of South Africa -- weighed in on what it called "reckless remarks."
"It is actually believed by most South Africans that the wealthy, mostly white people receive preferential treatment and it is for this reason that the Young Communist League cannot take seriously the claims made by Henke Pistorius," the party said.
Nkepile Mabuse, Brian Walker and Nana Karikari-apau contributed to this report.
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A picture taken on January 26, 2013, shows Pistorius, 26, and his Steenkamp, 29, at Melrose Arch in Johannesburg.
Pistorius leaves the Boshkop police station with his face covered in Pretoria East to be taken into custody on Thursday, February 14.
Pistorius appears in an advertisement for Nike with the unfortunate slogan "I am the bullet in the chamber." The image appeared on Pistorius' offical website, but has now been removed.
Pistorius won gold for the first time at the 2004 Athens Paralympics in the men's 200 meter final and set a new world record.
A pair of prosthetic legs stand on the ground as Pistorius coaches children at the Regional Arena, in Manchester, England, April 11, 2006.
Pistorius competes in a 400-meter race at the International German Championships Athletics for Disabled in Berlin on June 14, 2008.
Pistorius looks on during the the men's 400-meter B race during the IAAF Golden Gala on July 11, 2008, in Rome, Italy.
Pistorius runs to win gold ahead of Jerome Singleton, left, of the U.S. in the final of the 100-meter T44 as Marlon Shirley of the U.S. falls during the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games on September 9, 2008.
Pistorius poses with his medals from the IPC Athletics Championships at QE II Park on January 29, 2011, in Christchurch, New Zealand. He won three world titles, but lost the 100-meter T44 final to Jerome Singleton of the U.S., his first loss in a race over 100 meters since the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games.
Pistorius speaks with Olympic gold medalist Michael Johnson of the United States during a media gathering prior to the 13th IAAF World Athletics Championships Daegu 2011 on August 26, 2011, in Daegu, South Korea. Pistorius was the first amputee athlete to compete at the World Athletics Championships.
Pistorius passes the relay baton to Ofentse Mogawane of South Africa in the men's 4x400-meter relay heats during the IAAF World Athletics Championships at the Daegu Stadium on September 1, 2011, in Daegu, South Korea.
Pistorius, center, races in the men's 400-meter Round 1 heat in the London 2012 Olympic Games on August 4, 2012.
Pistorius of South Africa competes in a Round 1 heat on August 4 at the London 2012 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium.
Pistorius carries the flag during the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympics at the Olympic Stadium on August 29.
Pistorius runs across the finish line to win the men's 4x100-meter relay T42-46 final at the London 2012 Paralympic Games on September 5.
Pistorius competes in a men's 400-meter T44 heat at the London 2012 Paralympic Games on September 7.
Pistorius poses on the podium with his gold medal after winning the men's 400 meter T44 final at the London 2012 Paralympic Games on September 8, 2012.
Pistorius waves after receiving his honorary doctorate from Strathclyde University on November 12 in Glasgow, Scotland.
This undated handout picture released on February 14, 2013 by "Ice Models" in South Africa shows model Reeva Steenkamp.
Capacity Relations, the agency that represents Steenkamp, announced her death. "She was the kindest, sweetest human being; an angel on earth and will be sorely missed," the agency said on Twitter.
The model was born in Cape Town and grew up in Port Elizabeth. She later moved to Johannesburg, where she worked for various companies, including Toyota and cosmetics maker Avon.
Steenkamp, who had a law degree, has also worked as a presenter for FashionTV in South Africa and as a FHM covergirl.
Her passion included cars and cooking, and she was set to appear in the Tropika Island of Treasure Show on Saturday, according to the show's website.
"We are deeply saddened and extend our condolences to Reeva's family and friends," the show said in a message on its website.
Steenkamp died early Thursday after a shooting at the Pretoria home of Olympian Oscar Pistorius, her boyfriend. She is pictured here on February 07, 2013 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
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