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Content
A listing of transcripts of the dialogue and narrative of this section.
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Structure
The list provides the transcript, info about the text, and links to references contained in the text.
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Special Report
Transcripts for Section 4 of Episode 72
| Time | Summary | | | 46:34 | There is a perception amongst NGO’s and amongst certain members of the legal fraternity that a large degree of impunity exists in KwaZulu-Natal in terms of the lack of prosecutions and a lack of convictions. What’s your response to that? // I would like an opportunity to discuss that with the NGO’s. I believe the perception is wrong and I can certainly say under oath here that I and members of my office do everything within our power to bring murderers to justice from whatever political persuasion they may come. I draw your attention to the fact that eight high courts or supreme courts as they used to be called, sit in KwaZulu-Natal every day of the court year. And the idea that we don’t bring prosecutions to court is absolutely ridiculous. And another point to bear in mind is that people don’t have to blindly accept the word of an Attorney-General. If they’re not satisfied with what an Attorney-General decides the relatives or affected persons can bring private ...more | Full Transcript | | 48:05 | Why is it that the Truth Commission has had this myriad of cases where countless numbers of member of security forces have come before us admitting to tortures, murders and the Attorneys-General did not prosecute in any of those matters? // Well, I think the answer is quite obvious. If cases are investigated and evidence under oath is submitted to the decision taker and that evidence is false then the decision taker will obviously take a wrong decision because the wrong facts were placed before him. What’s happening now is that these people are now coming out of the wood and they’re now admitting that they lied, cheated and deceived in the past. | Full Transcript | | 48:47 | It was a very difficult situation on the ground that one was dealing with. I mean people were being blown up, buildings were being sabotaged, people were being killed; these were the facts that we were dealing with. It was a very messy situation and we had to, as we saw it, apply messy legislation without any particular crusading zeal to fight a just war or anything like that. It was a very unfortunate situation we landed ourselves in. | Full Transcript | | 49:12 | I wish to comment on crimes committed by security forces. Up to 1994 when I was given the job by the then state president in the TEC, of going into the recommendations and findings of the Goldstone Commission, I never realized what was happening in this country in reality. I had a good idea, but never realized the depth of the deceit to which we were all subject. But at the same time there was no way we could get to the truth without it coming from the inside. There was no way Harms could get to the truth. He was lied to when it came to security matters. We know the system was so much against us that sweepers were used by the security forces to cover-up scenes of murders, people who knew what the prosecutors would be looking for. So when we came we said, well we can’t prove a murder on this evidence. We were deceived; that was part of the system. Thus when you had a death in detention, which we all took seriously and there are instructions in all offices that are to be taken ...more | Full Transcript | | 50:32 | We were misled and we were lied to and the fact is we didn’t get to the truth, but that wasn’t for want of trying. | Full Transcript |
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