TRC Final Report

Volume 5

Chapter 7

Subsection 2

Denial: the gap between authorities and followers

18 From a range of different quarters, there was denial from senior persons in authority that they knew what was happening, or denial that they gave specific orders, even while their supporters or followers were claiming to have acted under instructions. In other words, there was a gap between the perceptions of leaders and followers. In the second National Party (NP) submission, Mr FW de Klerk said:

… but things happened which were not authorised, not intended, or of which we were not aware … I have never condoned gross violations of human rights … and reject any insinuation that it was ever the policy of my party or government.

19 In contrast, there is the perception of convicted Vlakplaas killer Colonel Eugene de Kock in the closing pages of his book:⁴

Yet the person who sticks most of all in my throat is former State President FW de Klerk. Not because I can prove, without a shadow of doubt, that he ordered the death of X or cross-border raid Y. Not even because of the holier than thou attitude that is discernible in the evidence he gave before the [Commission] on behalf of the National Party.

It is because, in that evidence, he simply did not have the courage to declare: “yes we at the top levels condoned what was done on our behalf by the security forces. What’s more, we instructed that it should be implemented. Or – if we did not actually give instructions we turned a blind eye. We didn’t move heaven and earth to stop the ghastliness. Therefore let the foot soldiers be excused”.

20 From another side of the conflict comes the position of the president of the IFP, Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi.

On no occasion has the IFP’s leadership ever made any decision anywhere at any time to use violence for political purposes. I have always abhorred violence now and will die abhorring violence. I personally have never made any decision to employ violence anywhere for any purpose whatsoever.

21 By contrast, here are extracts from statements by Inkatha members applying for amnesty on grounds of numerous murders:

Mr Wills: Now what was the purpose of this training? Mr Hlongwane: It was to protect IFP or areas controlled by Chiefs, as well as to kill the ANC.

22 IFP member, Mr Dlamini, said: I will say that it is painful to me that after all these activities that we committed that people should deny our existence and call us criminals. When I went for training at Caprivi, nobody called me a criminal. When I killed people here, I was not called a criminal. Today they do call us criminals and deny knowledge of our activities and ourselves. No IFP leader is prepared to stand before this Commission and admit to these activities. We decided among ourselves to expose these activities. We in fact were not mad persons who just took weapons and started shooting people at random. Therefore it hurts me very much for the IFP to desert us and say that they do not know anything about us – when they know that they were in fact responsible for all these things.