Women Take to Twitter to Support Oscar Pistorius, Twitterverse Explodes in Anger

A group of women have taken to Twitter to express support for Oscar Pistorius, as the South African sprinter faces trial for the murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. The group calls itself the #Pistorians and aims to fight for Pistorius' reputation.

The Twitter group has supporters from women around the world including the UK, South Africa, Germany and the island of Borneo, according to the Mail.

Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model, was found dead on the morning of 14 February, in the bathroom of Pistorius' Silver Woods residence. And, according to Pistorius, who denies the murder charges, he shot at and accidentally killed his girlfriend because he mistook her for an intruder.

A vocal member of the support group, @lupin_lizzie, describes herself as: "#pistorian I believe in Oscar Pistorius! Always have and always will!"

Some of the other tweets, combined, read: "Pistorian" definition: People who unrelentingly believe that Oscar Pistorius is innocent! That's me, and my opinion hasn't wavered once! There are some who are trying their hardest to stop that support by bullying but will always support him!"

Meanwhile, a second member of the group, believed to have been identified as Laura Lambden from the UK and tweeting under the name @LiliTyger, stated: "I support Oscar because I believe in innocent until proven guilty; because the State appear to have no evidence, so far, to back their charge of PM murder. I feel for the Steenkamps, losing a child. I don't attack people. I am a #pistorian and proud to be one!"

It should be noted, though, @LiliTyger seems to be no longer available on the social networking Web site and her account is inaccessible.

Criticism

However, not all of Twitterverse supports Oscar Pistorius' cheerleaders. Some users are critical of #Pistorians, believing they are misinformed and wrong to support someone who may have committed murder.

Zia ‏@SRamphaul wrote: "~ I'm off to "work" #Pistorians. When u run out of spew, swallow & spew again! At the end of the day, #OscarPistorius still killed someone!"

Zombie Phil: "I have no words to describe how idiotic these #Pistorians are. Good grief. Dear #Pistorians. You do realise he killed a person right? Doesn't matter who or why, he KILLED someone. On freakin purpose!"

Bail Proceedings

Meanwhile, in South Africa, conditions for the release of Pistorius on bail were relaxed. The 26-year-old is now allowed to leave the country but must inform his lawyers of any trip at least a week in advance.