Nelson Mandela has been accused by his former wife of betraying South Africa's black population. In a savage attack, Winnie Mandela said he had done nothing for the poor and should not have accepted the Nobel peace prize with the man who jailed him, FW de Klerk. The 73-year-old said her ex-husband had become a 'corporate foundation' who was 'wheeled out' only to raise money for the ANC party he once led. She said Archbishop Desmond Tutu was a cretin and claimed the sacrifices of Steve Biko and others in the fight against apartheid were being overlooked. The comments were made in an interview yesterday with Nadira Naipaul, the wife of novelist V S Naipaul.
Mrs Mandela became notorious in 1991 when she was jailed for six years for the kidnap of Stompie Moeketsi - a sentence later cut to a fine. Stompie, 14, had been murdered three years earlier by members of Mrs Mandela's bodyguard, the Mandela United Football Club. She also caused outrage by endorsing the punishment of apartheid collaborators with ' necklacing' - putting burning tyres around their necks. Yesterday she said: 'This name Mandela is an albatross around the necks of my family. 'You all must realise that Mandela was not the only man who suffered. There were many others, hundreds who languished in prison and died. 'Mandela did go to prison and he went in there as a young revolutionary but look what came out. 'Mandela let us down. He agreed to a bad deal for the blacks. Economically we are still on the outside. The economy is very much "white". 'I cannot forgive him for going to receive the Nobel with his jailer de Klerk. Hand in hand they went. Do you think de Klerk released him from the goodness of his heart? 'He had to. The times dictated it, the world had changed.'
The Mandelas, who divorced in 1996, were married for 38 years - although together for only five. Mrs Mandela criticised her country's Truth and Reconciliation Committee - which she appeared before in 1997 and which implicated her in gross violations of human rights. She said: 'What good does the truth do? How does it help to anyone to know where and how their loved ones are killed or buried? 'That Bishop Tutu who turned it all into a religious circus came here. He had a cheek to tell me to appear. 'I told him that he and his other like-minded cretins were only sitting there because of our struggle and me. Look what they make him do. The great Mandela. He has no control or say any more. 'They put that huge statue of him right in the middle of the most affluent white area of Johannesburg. Not here [in Soweto] where we spilled our blood. 'Mandela is now like a corporate foundation. He is wheeled out globally to collect the money.'
She said her daughters, Zenani, 51, and Zindzi, 50, had to struggle through red tape to speak to their 91-year-old father, who led South Africa from 1994 to 1999.
Source: Daily Mail
Showing posts with label TRC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TRC. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Constitutional Court upholds pardons decision
The Constitutional Court on Tuesday upheld a high court decision interdicting the president from granting pardons to perpetrators of political violence without first consulting victims.
Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB) member Ryna Albutt appealed against the decision in the Constitutional Court after it was handed down in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on April 29 2009. Albutt applied for pardon under a special dispensation introduced by former president Thabo Mbeki in 2007.
In a unanimous judgement, Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo found that the exercise of the power to grant pardon had to be rationally related to its purpose. Mbeki had hoped the special dispensation would achieve national unity and national reconciliation and said he would be guided by the criteria, principles and spirit of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) amnesty process, Ngcobo noted. He held that, given the country's history, victim participation was the only rational means of contributing to national reconciliation and national unity.
Victims had to be given an opportunity to participate to determine the facts on which the pardon was based. Ngcobo emphasised that the court's finding applied only to pardons brought under the special dispensation and not to any other categories. He dismissed the appeal with costs.
The Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation approached the high court for relief after Mbeki established the special dispensation process for applications by people convicted of politically motivated crimes, but who did not take part in the TRC. Mbeki established a Pardons Reference Group (PRG) on which each political party in Parliament was represented. The PRG was formally constituted on January 18 2008. It considered 2 114 applications for pardons and made recommendations to the president. From February 2008 to March 2009, the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation and other non-governmental organisations unsuccessfully tried to ensure victim participation, greater transparency and public disclosure. They then brought the high court application, which was found in their favour.
Albutt, who was jailed for an attack on black residents in Kuruman in Northern Cape, was joined in his challenge of the high court decision by the president and the justice minister.
Source: Mail & Guardian
Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB) member Ryna Albutt appealed against the decision in the Constitutional Court after it was handed down in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on April 29 2009. Albutt applied for pardon under a special dispensation introduced by former president Thabo Mbeki in 2007.
In a unanimous judgement, Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo found that the exercise of the power to grant pardon had to be rationally related to its purpose. Mbeki had hoped the special dispensation would achieve national unity and national reconciliation and said he would be guided by the criteria, principles and spirit of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) amnesty process, Ngcobo noted. He held that, given the country's history, victim participation was the only rational means of contributing to national reconciliation and national unity.
Victims had to be given an opportunity to participate to determine the facts on which the pardon was based. Ngcobo emphasised that the court's finding applied only to pardons brought under the special dispensation and not to any other categories. He dismissed the appeal with costs.
The Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation approached the high court for relief after Mbeki established the special dispensation process for applications by people convicted of politically motivated crimes, but who did not take part in the TRC. Mbeki established a Pardons Reference Group (PRG) on which each political party in Parliament was represented. The PRG was formally constituted on January 18 2008. It considered 2 114 applications for pardons and made recommendations to the president. From February 2008 to March 2009, the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation and other non-governmental organisations unsuccessfully tried to ensure victim participation, greater transparency and public disclosure. They then brought the high court application, which was found in their favour.
Albutt, who was jailed for an attack on black residents in Kuruman in Northern Cape, was joined in his challenge of the high court decision by the president and the justice minister.
Source: Mail & Guardian
Monday, December 17, 2001
Witch doctors 'cleanse' Vlakplaas
VLAKPLAAS, the notorious farm used covertly by the South African state for murder and torture under apartheid, saw blood spilled again yesterday as witch doctors slaughtered livestock to exorcise its evil spirits. Ten years after the last white secret policemen left, hundreds of black "traditional healers" gathered to cleanse a place viewed by most modern South Africans as the Jews view Auschwitz. Drums were beaten, whistles blown and elaborate dances performed by groups of witch doctors from all over South Africa, next to the now-overgrown helipad once used to deliver victims of the apartheid regime's security apparatus.
Farm buildings that once echoed to the screams of victims echoed to the screams of cattle and goats that had their throats cut by experts in magic and the black arts. "This is to put the souls of the victims to rest and to appease their ancestors," said one woman between gyrations under the baking hot December sun.
Some of the men wore beaded head-dresses and animal skins while the women wrapped themselves in an elaborate collection of bright scarves and shawls. A few white members of the local police contingent deployed at the farm raised their eyebrows in surprise at some of the performances. But the commander said he thought the event a "good idea". "Traditional healers feel the collective wound left by Vlakplaas can be healed," said Wally Serote, chairman of the Indigenous Knowledge Secretariat. "Vlakplaas with its horrific memories can be turned into a place of reconciliation and healing."
The white caretaker of the farm, Louis Smit, who is a born-again Christian, said he hoped the ceremony would rid the place of some of its demons. He casually pointed to a room next to the verandah where a man was beaten to death with a snooker cue in the 1980s and at the barbecue area, which was used to burn body parts.
Vlakplaas, a pretty, 250-acre farm only 20 minutes' drive from Pretoria but hidden by a ring of mountains, has yet to have its full history revealed. It served for more than 10 years as the headquarters of the secret police's often brutal efforts to hold on to power but was kept secret by the white government. During the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings, which were meant to draw a line under apartheid-era atrocities, visits were made to the Vlakplaas and a number of unmarked graves were discovered. The event at Vlakplaas was intended to pave the way for the farm being turned into a museum and a centre for the training of witch doctors.
Source: Telegraph
Farm buildings that once echoed to the screams of victims echoed to the screams of cattle and goats that had their throats cut by experts in magic and the black arts. "This is to put the souls of the victims to rest and to appease their ancestors," said one woman between gyrations under the baking hot December sun.
Some of the men wore beaded head-dresses and animal skins while the women wrapped themselves in an elaborate collection of bright scarves and shawls. A few white members of the local police contingent deployed at the farm raised their eyebrows in surprise at some of the performances. But the commander said he thought the event a "good idea". "Traditional healers feel the collective wound left by Vlakplaas can be healed," said Wally Serote, chairman of the Indigenous Knowledge Secretariat. "Vlakplaas with its horrific memories can be turned into a place of reconciliation and healing."
The white caretaker of the farm, Louis Smit, who is a born-again Christian, said he hoped the ceremony would rid the place of some of its demons. He casually pointed to a room next to the verandah where a man was beaten to death with a snooker cue in the 1980s and at the barbecue area, which was used to burn body parts.
Vlakplaas, a pretty, 250-acre farm only 20 minutes' drive from Pretoria but hidden by a ring of mountains, has yet to have its full history revealed. It served for more than 10 years as the headquarters of the secret police's often brutal efforts to hold on to power but was kept secret by the white government. During the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings, which were meant to draw a line under apartheid-era atrocities, visits were made to the Vlakplaas and a number of unmarked graves were discovered. The event at Vlakplaas was intended to pave the way for the farm being turned into a museum and a centre for the training of witch doctors.
Source: Telegraph
Friday, June 2, 2000
Amnesty granted to Craig Williams and Roger Raven - Ruth First's killers
Close relatives of murdered anti-apartheid activists Ruth First and Jeanette and Katryn Schoon have expressed outrage at the granting of amnesty to the assassins, apartheid spy Craig Williamson and his subordinate Roger Raven.Williamson, a former security police major, and Raven also received amnesty yesterday for conspiring to kill Joe Slovo, First's husband and then leader of the African National Congress military wing, uMkhonto weSizwe. They were also granted amnesty for transporting improvised explosive devices, interception of mail and possession of explosives.
George Bizos, the Slovo family's lawyer, said yesterday night that, although he respected the ruling by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's amnesty committee, he was saddened by the decision. "It was an unexpected decision. I am saddened by it. I think that, in the case of Ruth First and the Schoon mother and child, their murders were completely unnecessary in the way they chose to kill them by way of letter bombs."
Sherry McLean, widow of Marius Schoon, whom she married after the bombing murder of his first wife Jeanette and their daughter Katryn on June 28, 1984 in Lubango, Angola, said Williamson would never be forgiven for the killings. McLean said her husband, who died last year after testifying in the amnesty application, had made it clear Williamson would never be forgiven. "On a human level it's a difficult task to deal with when Williamson was responsible for the murders of a wife, a mother and daughter and sister," she said. ANC general secretary Kgalema Motlanthe said it was regrettable that the TRC had deemed it fit to grant amnesty to Williamson and Raven.
The amnesty committee said it was satisfied Williamson had told the truth and the killings were politically motivated. "I have not seen the whole (TRC) report, but we have to accept the committee has satisfied itself with that requirement," Motlanthe said. His sentiments were echoed by former environment and tourism minister Pallo Jordan, who was with First when she was killed in Maputo in 1982. However, he said: "We have to live with its (the TRC's) findings."
At the time of their deaths, Jeanette Schoon and First were lecturing at universities in Luanda and Maputo. They were active ANC supporters. The actions were meant to destabilise, demoralise and disadvantage the ANC, the applicants said. Ex-spies Willem Schoon (no relation) and John McPherson were also granted amnesty for the attempted murder of Marius Schoon and Joe Slovo in 1982 and 1984, and for the Lusaka bombing.
Source: Daily Dispatch
Thursday, June 1, 2000
Ruth First: Williamson given amnesty
Former apartheid spies Craig Williamson and Roger Raven have received amnesty for the 1982 murder of African National Congress activist Ruth First in Maputo. They also received amnesty for conspiring to kill Joe Slovo, First's husband and then leader of the ANC military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission's amnesty committee granted them amnesty at a hearing in Pretoria on Thursday, TRC spokesman Phila Ngqumba said. Williamson and Raven also received amnesty for the murder of Jeanette and Katryn Schoon at Lubango in Angola on June 28, 1984. Williamson was a major in the security police and Raven was his subordinate. The two men got permission from the then minister of police, through their superior Brigadier Piet Goosen, to launch cross-border attacks that included the bombing of the ANC's London headquarters, they said in their submissions to the TRC. They were also granted amnesty for transporting improvised explosive devices, interception of mail and possession of explosives. Both these applications were opposed by the Slovo and Schoon families.
Jeannette Schoon and Ruth First were at the time of their deaths lecturing at universities in Luanda and Maputo. They were active ANC supporters. The actions were meant to destabilise, demoralise and disadvantage the ANC, the applicants said.
Ex-spies Willem Schoon (no relation) and John McPherson were also granted amnesty for their roles in the attempted murder of Marius Schoon and Joe Slovo in 1982 and 1984, and for the Lusaka bombing. The bomb was built into a briefcase and placed at the gates of the ANC offices in Lusaka by police agents. It exploded and caused minimal damage - no deaths or injuries were reported. The intention had been that the bomb should be left at Slovo's office.
Two other security police operatives, Kobus Klopper and Johann Tait, were also granted amnesty for killing four alleged arms smugglers at Komatipoort. The smugglers were carrying weapons intended for the military wings of ANC and the Pan Africanist Congress.
Another security police operative, Michael Bellingan, was refused amnesty for murdering his wife Janine on September 20, 1991, and for the theft of cheques intended for the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa). As part of normal security police operations at the time, the mail of certain organisations, including Numsa, was intercepted. In the course of these operations during 1988 and 1989 a number of cheques drawn in favour of Numsa were intercepted. Bellingan told the committee he had discovered that his wife was not happy with his work as a security policeman and she was about to leak confidential information to the ANC. He said he decided to kill her because she was a security risk. The committee, in refusing Bellingan amnesty, said it was not satisfied that he had made full disclosure or that the murder constituted an act associated with a political objective.
Source: IoL
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission's amnesty committee granted them amnesty at a hearing in Pretoria on Thursday, TRC spokesman Phila Ngqumba said. Williamson and Raven also received amnesty for the murder of Jeanette and Katryn Schoon at Lubango in Angola on June 28, 1984. Williamson was a major in the security police and Raven was his subordinate. The two men got permission from the then minister of police, through their superior Brigadier Piet Goosen, to launch cross-border attacks that included the bombing of the ANC's London headquarters, they said in their submissions to the TRC. They were also granted amnesty for transporting improvised explosive devices, interception of mail and possession of explosives. Both these applications were opposed by the Slovo and Schoon families.
Jeannette Schoon and Ruth First were at the time of their deaths lecturing at universities in Luanda and Maputo. They were active ANC supporters. The actions were meant to destabilise, demoralise and disadvantage the ANC, the applicants said.
Ex-spies Willem Schoon (no relation) and John McPherson were also granted amnesty for their roles in the attempted murder of Marius Schoon and Joe Slovo in 1982 and 1984, and for the Lusaka bombing. The bomb was built into a briefcase and placed at the gates of the ANC offices in Lusaka by police agents. It exploded and caused minimal damage - no deaths or injuries were reported. The intention had been that the bomb should be left at Slovo's office.
Two other security police operatives, Kobus Klopper and Johann Tait, were also granted amnesty for killing four alleged arms smugglers at Komatipoort. The smugglers were carrying weapons intended for the military wings of ANC and the Pan Africanist Congress.
Another security police operative, Michael Bellingan, was refused amnesty for murdering his wife Janine on September 20, 1991, and for the theft of cheques intended for the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa). As part of normal security police operations at the time, the mail of certain organisations, including Numsa, was intercepted. In the course of these operations during 1988 and 1989 a number of cheques drawn in favour of Numsa were intercepted. Bellingan told the committee he had discovered that his wife was not happy with his work as a security policeman and she was about to leak confidential information to the ANC. He said he decided to kill her because she was a security risk. The committee, in refusing Bellingan amnesty, said it was not satisfied that he had made full disclosure or that the murder constituted an act associated with a political objective.
Source: IoL
Friday, October 15, 1999
'Kill the Boer' slogan led to murders
The convicted murderer of a Vryheid farmer told the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Pietermaritzburg on Thursday that his crime was influenced by the "kill the Boer, kill the farmer" slogan he heard at African National Congress rallies.
Ntuthuko Chuene, 28, is serving a life sentence for the murder of Godfrey Frederick Lanz Heuer on August 22, 1992. He also stole a Rossi Special firearm, ammunition and a suitcase containing about R1 000 in cash, a pocket calculator and books. He said he stole the guns to defend his community from the Inkatha Freedom Party. Chuene said his accomplice in the killing, Piet Nkosi, was later shot and killed by the police. He said he was forced by circumstances in the area where he lived, Mondlo, to commit the crimes. The killing was not directed at Heuer, as he just happened to be a white farmer at the wrong time. "I could have killed any other white man I came across at that time. My frustrations were directed to white men because they had what we did not have," Chuene said. "I am sorry, I look back now and regret."
Heuer's wife Amy said she did not believe Chuene killed her husband because of politically motivated reasons. "I do not want him to be granted amnesty. I watched my husband die in front of me and could not help him," she said.
Source: IoL
Ntuthuko Chuene, 28, is serving a life sentence for the murder of Godfrey Frederick Lanz Heuer on August 22, 1992. He also stole a Rossi Special firearm, ammunition and a suitcase containing about R1 000 in cash, a pocket calculator and books. He said he stole the guns to defend his community from the Inkatha Freedom Party. Chuene said his accomplice in the killing, Piet Nkosi, was later shot and killed by the police. He said he was forced by circumstances in the area where he lived, Mondlo, to commit the crimes. The killing was not directed at Heuer, as he just happened to be a white farmer at the wrong time. "I could have killed any other white man I came across at that time. My frustrations were directed to white men because they had what we did not have," Chuene said. "I am sorry, I look back now and regret."
Heuer's wife Amy said she did not believe Chuene killed her husband because of politically motivated reasons. "I do not want him to be granted amnesty. I watched my husband die in front of me and could not help him," she said.
Source: IoL
Friday, September 3, 1999
De Kock tells of Vlakplaas 'invasion'
Apartheid assassin and former Vlakplaas unit commander, Major Eugene de Kock, took the stand to respond to claims about his involvement in the murder of four Chesterville anti-apartheid activists 13 years ago. De Kock told the amnesty committee of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission sitting in Durban that the entire Vlakplaas unit descended on the city to deal with "terrorists" who had murdered three white policemen.
Applying for amnesty for the killing are Warrant Officers Butana Almond Nofemela and Nicholas Vermeulen, who were part of the contingent which killed the United Democratic Front (UDF) members. Although he gave the orders to kill, De Kock did not apply for amnesty but he was implicated by Nofemela and Vermeulen. He merely testified to state his version of the events. The purpose of the operation was also to eliminate Charles Ndaba, who was reported to be responsible for the murder of several policemen.
In a spectacular turn of events at the hearing, an askari (ANC-turned-informer), Simon Radebe, shocked the committee when he said he was the driver of the minibus which transported the contingent that attacked the UDF members at Chesterville in 1986. Radebe said: "I am telling the truth because I know what I was doing that day. You can say whatever you want, but I was the driver." But in a contradictory statement, Nofemela said: "I was the driver of the minibus that day. When I drove the men I did not know they were going to be killed."
Radebe's evidence corroborated De Kock's testimony. Radebe was De Kock's confidant and both have given testimony which contradicts Nofemela's statements. Nofemela fell out of favour when he was left to "feel the pain" for robbing and killing a farmer. De Kock did not cover up for Nofemela, who later exposed Vlakplaas unit activities which got De Kock into trouble.
Source: IoL
Applying for amnesty for the killing are Warrant Officers Butana Almond Nofemela and Nicholas Vermeulen, who were part of the contingent which killed the United Democratic Front (UDF) members. Although he gave the orders to kill, De Kock did not apply for amnesty but he was implicated by Nofemela and Vermeulen. He merely testified to state his version of the events. The purpose of the operation was also to eliminate Charles Ndaba, who was reported to be responsible for the murder of several policemen.
In a spectacular turn of events at the hearing, an askari (ANC-turned-informer), Simon Radebe, shocked the committee when he said he was the driver of the minibus which transported the contingent that attacked the UDF members at Chesterville in 1986. Radebe said: "I am telling the truth because I know what I was doing that day. You can say whatever you want, but I was the driver." But in a contradictory statement, Nofemela said: "I was the driver of the minibus that day. When I drove the men I did not know they were going to be killed."
Radebe's evidence corroborated De Kock's testimony. Radebe was De Kock's confidant and both have given testimony which contradicts Nofemela's statements. Nofemela fell out of favour when he was left to "feel the pain" for robbing and killing a farmer. De Kock did not cover up for Nofemela, who later exposed Vlakplaas unit activities which got De Kock into trouble.
Source: IoL
Thursday, June 24, 1999
KZN warfare described to TRC
Any deaths of family members caught in violent clashes between the leaders of the ANC and the IFP in Shobashobane on the south coast in the early 1990s resulted in the counter-attacks that led to the high incidence of bloodshed in the area. This was the evidence of an amnesty applicant before the amnesty committee of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) on Wednesday. The TRC also heard that the two political organisations "did not see eye to eye as to which one should operate in the area".
Ziphakamise Nyawose (30) told of how people closest to him were killed during the attacks, which made him flee the area to stay in the bush for three months."As a member of the ANC I was also a victim of these attacks. In 1991 I was attacked on three occasions at my home. In 1992 my house was attacked twice and I was also attacked at the taxi rank. In 1993 my brother Bongani was murdered and his decomposed body was found in the bush after a week. "In the same year I was in the company of Mandla Blose when we were attacked at a taxi rank. On that occasion we retaliated by shooting back at our attackers," he said.
Nyawose said he went to report the shooting to the police but was told that they would not investigate matters involving ANC supporters. "From there it was clear to us that the police were collaborating with our attackers. These attackers were known in our area. Their names were Mhlati Mbambo, Thokozani Blose, Dudu and Sithombe (Goodman) Ngcobo. They were all IFP members," he said.
Nyawose has applied for amnesty for the murder of Bhekabantu Samuel Cele and attempted murder of IFP strongman and businessman Goodman Ngcobo in 1993. Nyawose said Cele had died in the shoot-out but he was not the target; he was only caught in the crossfire. "Ngcobo was attacking us because some members of the ANC had killed his mother in 1990, but I was not involved in that killing," he said. He said he lost everything when his house was burned down by IFP supporters during the violence. He told the amnesty committee that he had since reconciled with Ngcobo.
Source: IoL
Ziphakamise Nyawose (30) told of how people closest to him were killed during the attacks, which made him flee the area to stay in the bush for three months."As a member of the ANC I was also a victim of these attacks. In 1991 I was attacked on three occasions at my home. In 1992 my house was attacked twice and I was also attacked at the taxi rank. In 1993 my brother Bongani was murdered and his decomposed body was found in the bush after a week. "In the same year I was in the company of Mandla Blose when we were attacked at a taxi rank. On that occasion we retaliated by shooting back at our attackers," he said.
Nyawose said he went to report the shooting to the police but was told that they would not investigate matters involving ANC supporters. "From there it was clear to us that the police were collaborating with our attackers. These attackers were known in our area. Their names were Mhlati Mbambo, Thokozani Blose, Dudu and Sithombe (Goodman) Ngcobo. They were all IFP members," he said.
Nyawose has applied for amnesty for the murder of Bhekabantu Samuel Cele and attempted murder of IFP strongman and businessman Goodman Ngcobo in 1993. Nyawose said Cele had died in the shoot-out but he was not the target; he was only caught in the crossfire. "Ngcobo was attacking us because some members of the ANC had killed his mother in 1990, but I was not involved in that killing," he said. He said he lost everything when his house was burned down by IFP supporters during the violence. He told the amnesty committee that he had since reconciled with Ngcobo.
Source: IoL
Wednesday, June 23, 1999
Sisters oppose brothers' amnesty
TWO sisters have turned against their brothers, one of whom pursued and shot dead their 79-year old father, who was also necklaced and set on fire. Ms Zodwa Cele and Ms Nkosazana Cele on Tuesday opposed the amnesty application of their brother Mr Roy Cele (40), who killed his father, Mr Amos Cele, in the late 1980s. The sisters testified at the amnesty hearing of their brothers Roy and Thulani Cele (34), who together led a group of youth in the Inanda area. Both men have applied for amnesty for the murder in December 1989 of their IFP-supporting father and of their relatives Ms Dudu Ngcobo and Mr Martin Ngcobo, who were also aligned to the organisation. The brothers were each sentenced to five years in jail for public violence and 15 years each for the murders.
The Cele sisters told the amnesty committee of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, sitting in Durban, that their brothers used the community to settle a domestic dispute following previous conflicts with their father. They dismissed any political motive for the crime. "I pursued somebody and shot him in the bush. I think it was my father, because he was found the next day at that spot," said Roy Cele. He said his father's houses were also set alight by the groups he led.
The amnesty committee, led by Judge Sisi Khampepe, spent time cross-examining Cele. Zodwa Cele told the committee that the two other victims were related to Thulani and Roy, the leaders of the vigilante group. She said they had come from Umlazi to Inanda for Christmas and not for political activities. Trouble started when Martin Ngcobo was found dead at a bus stop. A group of people then came from Umlazi to Thulani and Roy's house to inquire about the murder and the arm missing from the body.
Evidence that a group of people came looking for the brothers was denied by Zodwa Cele. Instead, she said the group beat her with a sjambok, assaulted her with stones and left her bleeding. "As I was running back home I saw a group of people led by Thulani Cele beating up Dudu (Ngcobo)," she said. She told of the chaos in the family when Roy led the group to his father's house. The sisters, one pregnant with twins, held their children and fled from their house. The Cele sisters said they would not like their brothers granted amnesty because they lied in their testimony.
Source: IoL
The Cele sisters told the amnesty committee of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, sitting in Durban, that their brothers used the community to settle a domestic dispute following previous conflicts with their father. They dismissed any political motive for the crime. "I pursued somebody and shot him in the bush. I think it was my father, because he was found the next day at that spot," said Roy Cele. He said his father's houses were also set alight by the groups he led.
The amnesty committee, led by Judge Sisi Khampepe, spent time cross-examining Cele. Zodwa Cele told the committee that the two other victims were related to Thulani and Roy, the leaders of the vigilante group. She said they had come from Umlazi to Inanda for Christmas and not for political activities. Trouble started when Martin Ngcobo was found dead at a bus stop. A group of people then came from Umlazi to Thulani and Roy's house to inquire about the murder and the arm missing from the body.
Evidence that a group of people came looking for the brothers was denied by Zodwa Cele. Instead, she said the group beat her with a sjambok, assaulted her with stones and left her bleeding. "As I was running back home I saw a group of people led by Thulani Cele beating up Dudu (Ngcobo)," she said. She told of the chaos in the family when Roy led the group to his father's house. The sisters, one pregnant with twins, held their children and fled from their house. The Cele sisters said they would not like their brothers granted amnesty because they lied in their testimony.
Source: IoL
Tuesday, June 22, 1999
De Kock: told to 'make a plan'
Former security police major Jan Potgieter conceded that former Vlakplaas commander Eugene de Kock may have interpreted something he had said as an order to kill askari Johannes Mabotha. "Something had to have happened in that telephone discussion to make De Kock prepare a murder scene," lawyer Wim Cornelius told Potgieter at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in Pretoria on Tuesday."I agree," Potgieter said.
On Monday, Potgieter denied that he had asked De Kock to kill Mabotha in 1989. He said he had asked De Kock to keep Mabotha safe at Vlakplaas because he would have been a witness against Winnie Madikizela-Mandela in a possible high treason case.De Kock told the TRC's amnesty committee earlier this month that Potgieter had asked him to "make a plan" with Mabotha to end his alleged involvement in police killings.
De Kock is seeking amnesty for killing Mabotha at Penge Mine near Burgersfort in Mpumalanga in 1989. Mabotha's body was blown up with explosives after De Kock shot him twice in the heart. Potgieter, who is not seeking amnesty for the incident, was earlier this month subpoenaed by the TRC to testify, because there were discrepancies between his and De Kock's evidence about Mabotha's death.
Mabotha, a former Vlakplaas askari, was arrested at Marble Hall in February 1989 after he disappeared from Vlakplaas and joined Madikizela-Mandela's Mandela United Football Club. Potgieter interrogated him for about six months on his involvement with Madikizela-Mandela. When it was time for Mabotha to be released, Potgieter phoned De Kock and asked him to house Mabotha at Vlakplaas as his life might have been in danger - the ANC knew he had been interrogated.
Yesterday, Potgieter said he could not remember if he had used Mabotha's name when he spoke to De Kock, and might have referred to the "Marble Hall askari". He said he could not remember exactly what he had said about Mabotha, but if he had told De Kock to "make a plan", De Kock could have misinterpreted the meaning. Potgieter said he handed Mabotha over to security members under the impression that he was going to Vlakplaas. Later that day Mabotha was shot dead. Potgieter had bought Mabotha a train ticket to Pietersburg so that he could go there if he no longer wanted to stay at Vlakplaas. Mabotha would have contacted him from Pietersburg, where Mabotha's family lived, and alternative arrangements would have been made for his safekeeping, Potgieter said. He said he never told De Kock about the ticket, or Mabotha being a witness against Madikizela-Mandela.
De Kock earlier told the amnesty committee he would never have killed Mabotha if he had known that the askari was to be a witness against Madikizela-Mandela. He said it would have been "suitable" if Madikizela-Mandela was prosecuted.
Source: IoL
On Monday, Potgieter denied that he had asked De Kock to kill Mabotha in 1989. He said he had asked De Kock to keep Mabotha safe at Vlakplaas because he would have been a witness against Winnie Madikizela-Mandela in a possible high treason case.De Kock told the TRC's amnesty committee earlier this month that Potgieter had asked him to "make a plan" with Mabotha to end his alleged involvement in police killings.
De Kock is seeking amnesty for killing Mabotha at Penge Mine near Burgersfort in Mpumalanga in 1989. Mabotha's body was blown up with explosives after De Kock shot him twice in the heart. Potgieter, who is not seeking amnesty for the incident, was earlier this month subpoenaed by the TRC to testify, because there were discrepancies between his and De Kock's evidence about Mabotha's death.
Mabotha, a former Vlakplaas askari, was arrested at Marble Hall in February 1989 after he disappeared from Vlakplaas and joined Madikizela-Mandela's Mandela United Football Club. Potgieter interrogated him for about six months on his involvement with Madikizela-Mandela. When it was time for Mabotha to be released, Potgieter phoned De Kock and asked him to house Mabotha at Vlakplaas as his life might have been in danger - the ANC knew he had been interrogated.
Yesterday, Potgieter said he could not remember if he had used Mabotha's name when he spoke to De Kock, and might have referred to the "Marble Hall askari". He said he could not remember exactly what he had said about Mabotha, but if he had told De Kock to "make a plan", De Kock could have misinterpreted the meaning. Potgieter said he handed Mabotha over to security members under the impression that he was going to Vlakplaas. Later that day Mabotha was shot dead. Potgieter had bought Mabotha a train ticket to Pietersburg so that he could go there if he no longer wanted to stay at Vlakplaas. Mabotha would have contacted him from Pietersburg, where Mabotha's family lived, and alternative arrangements would have been made for his safekeeping, Potgieter said. He said he never told De Kock about the ticket, or Mabotha being a witness against Madikizela-Mandela.
De Kock earlier told the amnesty committee he would never have killed Mabotha if he had known that the askari was to be a witness against Madikizela-Mandela. He said it would have been "suitable" if Madikizela-Mandela was prosecuted.
Source: IoL
Saturday, November 7, 1998
ANC paves the way for a travesty of justice
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) findings on human rights violations do nothing to provide justice for the victims of apartheid rule in South Africa. The truth is that the reconciliation it advocates is impossible because, behind the thin veneer of democracy provided by the ending of apartheid, South Africa is still characterised by appalling poverty and inequality.
Source: World Socialist Web
Source: World Socialist Web
Thursday, October 29, 1998
HRW Welcomes Release of South African Truth Report
Human Rights Watch welcomed the release of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's (TRC) draft report as an important step in establishing the truth about past human rights abuses committed in South Africa.
It is disturbing to see South Africa's political leadership undermine the vitally important work of the truth commission," said Kenneth Roth, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch. "The draft report offers all South Africans and the world at large the opportunity to learn from South Africa's suffering during apartheid. We call upon those responsible for the abuses committed by all sides to rise to this historical occasion and acknowledge their role in human rights abuses. Such acknowledgment is an essential step in reconciliation."
At a ceremony in Pretoria today, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the chairperson of the Commission, handed over the five-volume report to President Nelson Mandela. The report documents the widespread human rights abuses committed during the apartheid era in South Africa, implicating many apartheid government officials as well as the ANC and other liberation organizations.
Human Rights Watch expressed disappointment with the TRC's decision to excise findings from their draft report implicating the last president of the apartheid era, F.W. De Klerk. Human Rights Watch urged the TRC to take the necessary steps to ensure that all those proved responsible for abuses would be named in its final report.
Human Rights Watch condemned the attempt by the ruling ANC to prevent the release of the draft report, and urged its leadership to take responsibility for the abuses committed during its liberation struggle. ANC Secretary-General Kgalema Motlanthe attempted to block the release of the TRC report through a court application which was rejected early today. In the application, the ANC accused the TRC of "criminalizing the struggle for the liberation of the people of South Africa," and argued that if the ANC had to be bound by the requirements of the laws of war, South Africa's liberation struggle might have failed.
Human Rights Watch emphatically rejects the view advanced by the ANC that it should be held to a lower standard of scrutiny because it was fighting a just war against an oppressive system. The abuses committed by the ANC during its liberation struggle, including the targeting of innocent civilians in bombing campaigns and the torture and summary executions of suspected collaborators at ANC camps, cannot be justified by reference to the justice of its struggle. The objectives of any military or political campaign do not affect the obligations of all parties to respect the rules of war and the principles of international humanitarian law.
"The argument advanced by the ANC that they should not be held accountable for their abuses because they were committed in the furtherance of a legitimate struggle are directly contrary to the principles of international law," said Peter Takirambudde, Executive Director of the Africa Division of Human Rights Watch. "We urge the ANC to take responsibility for the abuses committed by its forces during the apartheid era, and to stop hiding behind the legitimacy of its struggle against apartheid."
Human Rights Watch strongly supports the call by the TRC to prosecute individuals who committed gross human rights violations and did not seek amnesty. Calls for a blanket amnesty should be rejected, as all individuals had the opportunity to seek amnesty from the TRC.
Source: Human Rights Watch
It is disturbing to see South Africa's political leadership undermine the vitally important work of the truth commission," said Kenneth Roth, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch. "The draft report offers all South Africans and the world at large the opportunity to learn from South Africa's suffering during apartheid. We call upon those responsible for the abuses committed by all sides to rise to this historical occasion and acknowledge their role in human rights abuses. Such acknowledgment is an essential step in reconciliation."
At a ceremony in Pretoria today, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the chairperson of the Commission, handed over the five-volume report to President Nelson Mandela. The report documents the widespread human rights abuses committed during the apartheid era in South Africa, implicating many apartheid government officials as well as the ANC and other liberation organizations.
Human Rights Watch expressed disappointment with the TRC's decision to excise findings from their draft report implicating the last president of the apartheid era, F.W. De Klerk. Human Rights Watch urged the TRC to take the necessary steps to ensure that all those proved responsible for abuses would be named in its final report.
Human Rights Watch condemned the attempt by the ruling ANC to prevent the release of the draft report, and urged its leadership to take responsibility for the abuses committed during its liberation struggle. ANC Secretary-General Kgalema Motlanthe attempted to block the release of the TRC report through a court application which was rejected early today. In the application, the ANC accused the TRC of "criminalizing the struggle for the liberation of the people of South Africa," and argued that if the ANC had to be bound by the requirements of the laws of war, South Africa's liberation struggle might have failed.
Human Rights Watch emphatically rejects the view advanced by the ANC that it should be held to a lower standard of scrutiny because it was fighting a just war against an oppressive system. The abuses committed by the ANC during its liberation struggle, including the targeting of innocent civilians in bombing campaigns and the torture and summary executions of suspected collaborators at ANC camps, cannot be justified by reference to the justice of its struggle. The objectives of any military or political campaign do not affect the obligations of all parties to respect the rules of war and the principles of international humanitarian law.
"The argument advanced by the ANC that they should not be held accountable for their abuses because they were committed in the furtherance of a legitimate struggle are directly contrary to the principles of international law," said Peter Takirambudde, Executive Director of the Africa Division of Human Rights Watch. "We urge the ANC to take responsibility for the abuses committed by its forces during the apartheid era, and to stop hiding behind the legitimacy of its struggle against apartheid."
Human Rights Watch strongly supports the call by the TRC to prosecute individuals who committed gross human rights violations and did not seek amnesty. Calls for a blanket amnesty should be rejected, as all individuals had the opportunity to seek amnesty from the TRC.
Source: Human Rights Watch
Wednesday, October 28, 1998
The voice of 'Prime Evil'
In the South African media, Eugene De Kock has been described as a mass killer, a psychopath known to the public as "Prime Evil". He's an unlikely villain. With his carefully combed hair and thick glasses, he looks more like a librarian than a ruthless assassin. And in the post-apartheid era of truth and reconciliation he has also become something of a hero, a man of integrity in a community of denial.Truth and reconciliation has been hard to come by in South Africa. Only one former apartheid cabinet minister has sought amnesty for his role in the political crimes of the last white government. Every other minister has dodged the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and passed off the crimes of the apartheid era as the work of a few rotten apples.
De Kock is one of the foul fruits grown from the tree of apartheid. When he admitted to his crimes in front of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission he was applauded by a black audience. They were commending him for his honesty, and his willingness to identify senior politicians on whose orders he carried out his dirty work. De Kock disputes the label of psychopath, arguing that he never took pleasure in killing his victims. It was a job he said, and he was acting under orders from the very top.
Eugene De Kock is on a crusade to finger his old bosses who let him fall for his crimes once he had outgrown his usefulness as an apartheid killing machine. He still gives them sleepless nights with his clarity and vision in recalling that dark era when a white government was prepared to cling to power by any means necessary.
The flaw within the Truth and Reconciliation Commission may be that such brutal honesty will not be put to good use. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission chose only the last three decades of the apartheid era for its frame of reference. It's a small period of South African history in which an awful lot of crimes were committed under the name of apartheid. But almost two and a half years on from the first investigative hearing, this Commission of Truth has been left with a huge lie: that it was not the apartheid leaders who were responsible for the heinous crimes of that era, but the foot soldiers like Eugene De Kock.
The ministers who guided and co-ordinated the evil strategy of apartheid have used the Truth Commission like a Catholic confession box. They have taken their pew and spoken softly only of the crimes they want to confess - and the Commission has absolved them of their sins, blessing them as they leave to forget about that awful past.
Source: BBC
Wednesday, July 9, 1997
CHURCHES WERE USED TO OPPRESS BLACKS, SAYS AMNESTY APPLICANT
Churches were used as instruments of oppression by the white minority, one of four men seeking amnesty for the 1993 St James Church massacre told the Truth Commission's amnesty committee on Wednesday.
Bassie Mkhumbuzi was a member of the Azanian People's Liberation Army unit that killed 11 people and wounded 58 others in a automatic rifle and handgrenade attack on the church's congregants in Cape Town on July 25, 1993. "Whites used churches to oppress blacks. They took our country using churches and bibles. We know and we have read from books they are the ones who have taken the land from us," Mkhumbuzi said. Truth Commission lawyer Robin Brink said Mkumbuzi and his comrades perpetrated a "mindless barbarity" on defenceless people praying in a house of worship. Was it a revenge attack?" he asked Mkhumbuzi. "No," Mkhumbuzi replied, "we just wanted our land to be brought back to us, not because we were revenging the actions of the church."
Mkhumbuzi, who was 17 years old at the time of the incident, said he had not been told beforehand by unit leader Sichumiso Nonxuba that a church was the target. Nevertheless, "I felt that whites were using churches to oppress blacks". There was confusion at the start of Wednesday's amnesty hearing in Cape Town when it emerged that one of the amnesty applicants - former Apla operations director Letlapa Mphahele - had failed to turn up. The whereabouts of Mphahlele were not known, lawyer Norman Arendse told the amnesty committee chaired by Judge Hassen Mall. Arendse said he represented Mphahlele's co-applicants Mkhumbuzi, Thobela Mlambisa and Gcinikhaya Makoma. Makoma was found guilty on 11 counts of murder and 58 counts of attempted murder in March 1995 and sentenced to 23 years' imprisonment.
Mkhumbuzi, a member of the SA National Defence Force, and Mlambisa are on trial facing similar charges relating to the attack. "We don't know where he (Mphahlele) is," Arendse said. "He has not given us any instructions. We can't understand and we don't have any reasons why he is not here. We ask that his application be withdrawn at this stage." Ian Bremridge, the lawyer for two of the victims opposing the amnesty applications, said Mphahlele's absence could be problematic as the other applicants intended testifying that he ordered the attack. The applications are being opposed by Dawie Ackermann, whose wife was killed, Lorenzo Smith and Ukranian sailor Dmitry Makogon, who lost both legs and an arm in the incident. Mkhumbuzi said while he sought forgiveness from the victims, "we could not stop what was happening at the time". "We were fighting for our country and for democracy. It was difficult at the time to stop such incidents. The purpose of Apla at that time was to fight until the land was brought back to its owners." Bremridge: "Do you thing the attack achieved anything?" Mkhumbusi: "Yes. Today We are in this country. We are living together. We are not fighting together."
On the day of the attack he had remained in the getaway vehicle while Nonxuba - who was killed in a car accident last Novemmber - and Makoma entered the church armed with R4 rifles and M26 handgrenades, which he had fetched earlier from Apla high command in Umtata. "I was told that I would be the security, Mlambisa the driver. Nonxuba and Makoma were going inside. After they came out of the building, I was to use the petrol bombs to throw them inside. "I heard a grenade and gunshots and then saw a red car stopping in front of us, apparently to block us. "I got out of the car and threw a petrol bomb at the car and Mlambisa shot at the car causing it to speed away." He said it was only later that night, while watching a television broadcast by CNN, that he saw for the first time what had happened inside the church. Mlambisa testified later that he was an Apla unit commissar based in Transkei when he was ordered to travel to Cape Town to take part in the operation. He only realised the target was a church when the team drove up to the target in Kenilworth, Cape Town. "I deeply regret the loss of lives and causing so many people to be injured," he said.
Source: South African Press Association
Bassie Mkhumbuzi was a member of the Azanian People's Liberation Army unit that killed 11 people and wounded 58 others in a automatic rifle and handgrenade attack on the church's congregants in Cape Town on July 25, 1993. "Whites used churches to oppress blacks. They took our country using churches and bibles. We know and we have read from books they are the ones who have taken the land from us," Mkhumbuzi said. Truth Commission lawyer Robin Brink said Mkumbuzi and his comrades perpetrated a "mindless barbarity" on defenceless people praying in a house of worship. Was it a revenge attack?" he asked Mkhumbuzi. "No," Mkhumbuzi replied, "we just wanted our land to be brought back to us, not because we were revenging the actions of the church."
Mkhumbuzi, who was 17 years old at the time of the incident, said he had not been told beforehand by unit leader Sichumiso Nonxuba that a church was the target. Nevertheless, "I felt that whites were using churches to oppress blacks". There was confusion at the start of Wednesday's amnesty hearing in Cape Town when it emerged that one of the amnesty applicants - former Apla operations director Letlapa Mphahele - had failed to turn up. The whereabouts of Mphahlele were not known, lawyer Norman Arendse told the amnesty committee chaired by Judge Hassen Mall. Arendse said he represented Mphahlele's co-applicants Mkhumbuzi, Thobela Mlambisa and Gcinikhaya Makoma. Makoma was found guilty on 11 counts of murder and 58 counts of attempted murder in March 1995 and sentenced to 23 years' imprisonment.
Mkhumbuzi, a member of the SA National Defence Force, and Mlambisa are on trial facing similar charges relating to the attack. "We don't know where he (Mphahlele) is," Arendse said. "He has not given us any instructions. We can't understand and we don't have any reasons why he is not here. We ask that his application be withdrawn at this stage." Ian Bremridge, the lawyer for two of the victims opposing the amnesty applications, said Mphahlele's absence could be problematic as the other applicants intended testifying that he ordered the attack. The applications are being opposed by Dawie Ackermann, whose wife was killed, Lorenzo Smith and Ukranian sailor Dmitry Makogon, who lost both legs and an arm in the incident. Mkhumbuzi said while he sought forgiveness from the victims, "we could not stop what was happening at the time". "We were fighting for our country and for democracy. It was difficult at the time to stop such incidents. The purpose of Apla at that time was to fight until the land was brought back to its owners." Bremridge: "Do you thing the attack achieved anything?" Mkhumbusi: "Yes. Today We are in this country. We are living together. We are not fighting together."
On the day of the attack he had remained in the getaway vehicle while Nonxuba - who was killed in a car accident last Novemmber - and Makoma entered the church armed with R4 rifles and M26 handgrenades, which he had fetched earlier from Apla high command in Umtata. "I was told that I would be the security, Mlambisa the driver. Nonxuba and Makoma were going inside. After they came out of the building, I was to use the petrol bombs to throw them inside. "I heard a grenade and gunshots and then saw a red car stopping in front of us, apparently to block us. "I got out of the car and threw a petrol bomb at the car and Mlambisa shot at the car causing it to speed away." He said it was only later that night, while watching a television broadcast by CNN, that he saw for the first time what had happened inside the church. Mlambisa testified later that he was an Apla unit commissar based in Transkei when he was ordered to travel to Cape Town to take part in the operation. He only realised the target was a church when the team drove up to the target in Kenilworth, Cape Town. "I deeply regret the loss of lives and causing so many people to be injured," he said.
Source: South African Press Association
Tuesday, October 29, 1996
DE KOCK TRIAL TO CONCLUDE ON WEDNESDAY
The 19-month trial of former Vlakplaas security police base commander Colonel Eugene de Kock will draw to a conclusion on Wednesday when sentence will finally be passed. De Kock has been convicted on 89 charges, including six of murder, two of conspiracy to commit murder and several of fraud and the illegal possession of arms and ammunition
The murder charges relate to the deaths of five would-be robbers in an ambush outside Nelspruit in 1992 and the murder of askari Goodwill Sikhakhane, who was killed near Greytown in 1991 on de Kock's orders to prevent him from revealing police involvement in the disappearance of ANC members who were part of Operation Vula.
De Kock was also convicted of conspiring to murder Vlakplaas colleague Brian Ngqulunga and Krugersdorp security guard Japie Maponya, as well as attempting to murder self-confessed police hitsquad leader Dirk Coetzee and the culpable homicide of ANC attorney Bheki Mhlangeni, who was killed by a parcel bomb meant for Coetzee.
De Kock, who has said he will ask the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for amnesty after the conclusion of his trial, in mitigating evidence named several high-ranking politicians and policemen as the men who gave him orders to kill. He also said police spy Craig Williamson was involved in the assassination of Swedish prime minister Olof Palme, and that former president P W Botha knew about the bombing of Cosatu House as well as 1985 cross-border raids into Lesotho and Botswana.
The State asked Mr Justice Willie van der Merwe to send de Kock to jail for longer than 100 years, saying he had no remorse and that even if he suffered from post traumatic stress, it played no role whatsoever in his crimes. The State also argued that politics had nothing to do with the trial, which it said was all about common criminal deeds.
De Kock's defence attempted to place his actions against a background of an all-out fight against what he believed were his enemies, namely the SACP, ANC and PAC. It was argued that the impression could easily be created that de Kock was being used as an example, and that the State was making a scapegoat of him while other former security policemen, "who were just as guilty as him", were going free, and were even being given high posts with huge salaries within the police service.
Source: SAPA
The murder charges relate to the deaths of five would-be robbers in an ambush outside Nelspruit in 1992 and the murder of askari Goodwill Sikhakhane, who was killed near Greytown in 1991 on de Kock's orders to prevent him from revealing police involvement in the disappearance of ANC members who were part of Operation Vula.
De Kock was also convicted of conspiring to murder Vlakplaas colleague Brian Ngqulunga and Krugersdorp security guard Japie Maponya, as well as attempting to murder self-confessed police hitsquad leader Dirk Coetzee and the culpable homicide of ANC attorney Bheki Mhlangeni, who was killed by a parcel bomb meant for Coetzee.
De Kock, who has said he will ask the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for amnesty after the conclusion of his trial, in mitigating evidence named several high-ranking politicians and policemen as the men who gave him orders to kill. He also said police spy Craig Williamson was involved in the assassination of Swedish prime minister Olof Palme, and that former president P W Botha knew about the bombing of Cosatu House as well as 1985 cross-border raids into Lesotho and Botswana.
The State asked Mr Justice Willie van der Merwe to send de Kock to jail for longer than 100 years, saying he had no remorse and that even if he suffered from post traumatic stress, it played no role whatsoever in his crimes. The State also argued that politics had nothing to do with the trial, which it said was all about common criminal deeds.
De Kock's defence attempted to place his actions against a background of an all-out fight against what he believed were his enemies, namely the SACP, ANC and PAC. It was argued that the impression could easily be created that de Kock was being used as an example, and that the State was making a scapegoat of him while other former security policemen, "who were just as guilty as him", were going free, and were even being given high posts with huge salaries within the police service.
Source: SAPA
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