Issued by: Truth and Reconciliation Commission
The TRC's Western and Northern Cape Region starts preparations tomorrow (Thursday) for it's next round of Human Rights Violations hearings, due to start in August. A meeting will be held with NGO's, local government representatives and other role players in Beaufort- West, to start the process of statement-taking that will lead up to public hearings between 12 and 14 August 1996 in the Karoo reg ion.
The first regional phase of the commission's efforts to reach out to communities in the outlying areas, started in April with statement-taking in the Boland, South Cape and Northern Cape. This will culminate from next week in three hearings, one in Kimberley, one in George and one in Worcester - during this month.
In the meantime, the teams are also moving out in the Karoo, Tygerberg and Helderberg areas and the West Coast/Namaqualand area to prepare for hearings during August.
Tomorrow's meeting will be addressed by Commissioners Mary Burton and Dr Mapule Ramashala. They will inform the attendants about the work of the commission, and ask for volunteer statement- takers and other support from the area, to enable the commission to document and hear accounts of gross human rights violations in the Karoo during the Apartheid era.
A public meeting will be held on June 20, this year in Beaufort- West to inform the public about the process after which statements will be taken across the Karoo region.
KIMBERLEY HEARINGS:
Altogether 18 cases of gross human rights violations will be heard at the Kimberley hearings which will be held from Monday, June 10 to 11. The commission's statement-takers took about 150 state- ments from witnesses in the Northern Cape area during the last six weeks. Many witnesses have however, elected to stay anonymous and their statements will be investigated and passed on to the Reparations and Rehabilitation Committee.
For more information please contact Christelle Terreblanche, media liaison officer, 0824588461. 5 June