TRC Final Report

Volume 6

Section 5

Chapter 7

Subsection 4

WEBSITE

23. The Commission established a website, which became popular amongst researchers and scholars of transitional justice. The contents of that website currently appear in a section on the Department of Justice website.

2 4 . The Commission recommends that custody of the website should be held by the National State Archives, who should manage it in a way that ensures maximum accessibility. The Commission recommends that the Archives, in consultation with the various stakeholders, should decide on the physical location of the site.

WITCHCRAFT

25. The Commission received statements from many victims as well as a number of amnesty applications regarding the use of witchcraft in the commission of gross human rights violations. ‘Witchcraft’ and ‘tradition and culture’ were major factors cited in a number of cases as being the motivation for the commission of gross human rights violations.

26. The Commission, and in particular the Amnesty Committee, accepted ‘witchcraft’ as a political motive sufficient within the context of the founding Act to grant amnesty to those applicants who had satisfied the provisions of the amnesty legislation. The political context of the time warranted this approach.

27. However, the Commission notes that this problem is endemic particularly in many parts of Limpopo province. The Commission received hundreds of statements regarding this issue after the cut-off date.

28. The Commission recommends therefore that the authorities note this problem as a matter of urgency, and embark on an education program and take action to stop practices related to witchcraft that lead to the commission of gross human rights violations.

EXERCISE OF THE PRESIDENTIAL PARDON

29. The following comments and recommendation are made in the full knowledge that the Commission operated under enormous political and legal constraints and that it was not a holy cow that was not itself open to criticism:

30. With this in mind, the Commission notes:

a the recent pardons extended by the President and b the President’s constitutional discretion to pardon those who have committed crimes, and further, c that it in no way wishes to impugn or intervene in this discretion.

31. The Commission is, however, of the view that this presidential discretion should not be used to subvert the rights of victims by framing blanket amnesties through a pardon process.

32. The Commission therefore recommends that in the event that the President is considering a further amnesty provision, the following should be taken into account:

a that the rationale for establishing the Commission should not be undermined and that the value of its work should not be compromised t h rough such a process;

b that real reconciliation comes from facing the demons of the past honestly and demanding truth and accountability, and c

that victims should not be ‘revictimised’ and that any amnesty should take into account their needs and their right to the truth and full disclosure and ultimately reparation .

33. The Commission is thus of the view that any amnesty and pardon must make p rovision for the rights of victims and maintain the constitutionality of our new state based on disclosure and a respect for the human rights of all.

POPULAR VERSION

34. The Commission will hand the Minister of Justice the completed popular version of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s report.

35. The Commission recommends that the Minister has this printed, published and distributed to schools and tertiary institutions in conjunction with the Ministry of Education.

‘CLOSED LIST’ POLICY

36. The Commission, anxious not to impose a huge burden on the government, adopted a ‘closed list’ policy. Effectively this limited the payment of reparation only to those victims who made statements to the Commission before 15 December 1997. In the period between December 1997 and January 2002, victims’ groups confirmed to the Commission that they had collected more than 8000 statements from victims who, for a variety of reasons, were unable to access the Commission. The consequence of ignoring this group of people has potentially dangerous implications for South Africa, as communities may become divided if some receive reparation that is not accessible to others who have had similar experiences.

37. The Commission is of the view that the ‘closed list’ policy should be reviewed by government, in order to ensure justice and equity. It needs to be noted that, in many other countries which have gone through similar processes, victims have been able to access reparation many years after the truth commission process has been completed.