Issued by: Office of the President
CANDIDATES TO BE APPOINTED TO THE TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION
Archbishop Desmond Tutu (Chairperson)
One of three Nobel Peace Prize winners from South Africa, Archbishop Desmond Tutu is a household name. He is the Archbishop of Cape Town of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa.
Dr Alex Boraine (Deputy Chairperson)
Dr Alex Boraine now serves as executive director of Justice in Transition, formed in August last year to focus on redressing past human rights violations.
Borain, ordained Methodist Church minister in 1938, has served as executive director of the Institute for Democracy in South Africa from 1986 to 1994.
Mrs Mary Burton
Mrs Mary Burton was national president of the Black Sash from 1986 to 1990 and is still a member of the organisation. She has been involved in discussions and workshops relating to the Trust Commission.
Advocate Chris De Jager
Mr Christiaan de Jager, a lawyer, is a member of the Volkstaat Council. He is a member of the Human Rights Commission.
Rev B Finca
The Reverend Bongani Finca was appointed as interim administrator by the Transitional Executive Council after military ruler Brigadier Oupa Gqoza's administration collapsed. He is now president of the Eastern Cape Provincial Council of Churches and a member of the national executive committee of the South African Council of Churches.
Ms Sisi Kamphephe
Ms Sibongile Kamphephe is a lawyer and is a member of the Black Lawyers Association.
Mr Richard Lyster
Lawyer Mr Richard Lyster has been director of the Legal Resources Centre in Durban since 1990. He has served on the arbitration panel of the Independent Mediation Service of South Africa and is a member of its mediation panel.
Mr Wynand Malan
Mr Wynand Malan resigned as a National Party MP under former state president PW Botha. He then formed the National Democratic MOvement, which later merged with the Progressive Federal Party to form the Democratic Party. He quit politics in 1989 and practises as an attorney and as a value systems management consultant.
Ms Hlengiwe Mkhize
Ms Hlengiwe Mkhize, the national director of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, is a psychologist who specialises in treating people traumatised by violence.
Nominated by the Women's Development Foundation, Mkhize is also a member of the South African Black Social Worker's Association as well as the International Society of Medicine and Law.
Mr Dumisa Ntsebeza
Attorney Dumisa Ntsebeza served as founder president of the National Association of Democratic Lawyers and later as president of the Black Lawyers Association (1989 to 1991). He is now the BLA's publicity secretary. He serves as chairperson of the Prisoners Welfare Programme.
Dr Wendy Orr
Dr Wendy Orr compiled a list of detainees who were tortured in Port Elizabeth in the mid-1980's. She successfully filed an interdict against the Minister of Law and Order to prevent police from assaulting prisoners. She is currently Deputy Registrar of Student Affairs at the University of Cape Town.
Dr Mapule Ramashala
Outstanding clinical psychologist, medical researcher, who despite long absence from South Africa, remained involved in and possesses acute understanding of problems to be faced in addressing legacy of human rights abuses and challenges.
Dr Faizel Randera
Dr Faizel Randera was a member of a committee of the National Medical and Dental Association that investigated the poisoning of former South African Council of Churches leader the Reverend Frank Chikane in 1989. Since 1986 Randera has worked extensively with human rights lawyers, providing medical-legal reports on people who suffered physical and psychological abuse.
Dr Yasmin Sooka
Ms Yasmin Sooka, a lawyer, is the national president of the World Conference on Religion and Peace. She served as a member of the legal task force in the National Co-ordinating Committee for the Repatriation of South African Exiles.
Ms Glenda Wildschut
Ms Glenda Wildschut is a social worker at the Western Cape Trauma Centre and has worked in the underprivileged communities in the Western Cape. She has also worked with victims of violence.
Rev K M Mqojo
Rev Mqojo is a prominent Methodist clergyman. He comes originally from KwaZulu/Natal.
Adv Denzil Potgieter
Adv Potgieter is a member of the Cape Bar who has appeared in various civil and political rights matters. He acted as secretary for the Presidential Panel which shortlisted the candidates.