TRC Final Report

Volume 1

Chapter 10

Subsection 8

■ MODUS OPERANDI

5 The Committee met on a regular basis. As a rule this was once a month in Johannesburg. The recorded minutes of these meetings reflect all the policy decisions adopted. A monthly activity report with recommendations was submitted to the Commission for inclusion on its agenda for discussion and adoption.

6 The Human Rights Violations Committee Findings Task Group, which included the vice-chairpersons, the executive secretary and one representative from each region (either a commissioner or committee member), met prior to each national meeting to make policy recommendations regarding the findings process and to report on regional pre-findings. Towards the end of the process, a representative from the Reparation and Rehabilitation Committee joined the group. The Findings Task Group tabled reports and policy recommendations for approval and acceptance by the national business meeting held the following day.

7 While the Act outlined certain statutory obligations for the Human Rights Violations Committee, it gave it the latitude to develop its own unique operational procedures. Inevitably, a primary focus of the regular, national business meetings was to provide an operational policy framework for work in progress and anticipated work, processes and procedures. As a result, the development of policies that would govern the work of the Human Rights Violations Committee was both reactive and proactive. It was reactive in the sense that the experience of gross violations of human rights differed from region to region. It was proactive insofar as one could anticipate emerging processes. Policy formulation was thus a dynamic context-driven process that tried to be sensitive to regional dynamics within a national operating framework.⁸

8 The evolving methodological framework was comprehensive, ranging from the development of regionally sensitive policy on the gathering, processing and interpretation of data on gross human rights violations to mundane operational considerations such as the timing of business meetings.

9 The work of the Human Rights Violations Committee was extensively supported by the Investigation Unit, especially concerning the pre-findings and findings process. The Research Department also contributed by establishing the political context of the violations alleged by victims. It also provided an analytical capacity to enquire into the systematic patterns of abuse and the motives and perspectives that led to gross human rights violations.

■ FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES

10 Many of the operational activities of the Commission were driven by the need of the Human Rights Violations Committee to fulfil the terms of its mandate. Areas of operational policy included the following:

Public awareness

11 Public awareness initiatives, aimed at communicating the mandate of the Commission to ordinary South Africans, were co-ordinated by a Media and Communications Department.

Liaison with stakeholders and others

12 Meetings were held with various stakeholders, nodal (liaison) points⁹ and state and non-state structures in order to encourage individuals and organisations to make statements (tell their stories) to the Commission.

Public ‘victim hearings’

13 Public victim hearings were hosted. These had to take into account:

a the safety and security of all activities and participants;

b representivity of victims appearing at hearings;

c sensitivity with regards to choice of hearing venues;

d seating arrangements at hearings;

e simultaneous translation services;

f the format and length of hearings; g the length of testimony of victims;

h legal assistance to victims;

i psycho-social support for victims and their families who testified;

j the issuing of section 30 notices to alleged perpetrators;

k policy on ‘cross examination of victims’ by alleged perpetrators;

l policy on the types of public hearings to be held, including victim hearings, where the focus was on the individual victim testifying on her or his experience of suffering.