Issued by: Truth & Reconciliation Commission
From: MDU LEMBEDE - TRC Spokesman (0341-3076745/3076767 cellular-082 4588464
After the highly successful human rights violation hearings that were held at the Jewish Centre in Durban last month, The KwaZulu-Natal/Orange Free State Region of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission is to hold a series of hearings in various parts of the two provinces that the regional TRC covers.
It will kick-off by holding the next hearings for victims of gross human rights violations in Bloemfontein. These hearings will be held over three (3) days, from July 2 to July 4, at the town's City Hall on the corner of Voortrekker and President Brand streets.
The Bloemfontein hearings have all the hallmarks of being a major event. The TRC intends to accord them the same high-profile status that it gave all other first victim hearings that were held in different provinces. Both the chairman of the TRC, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and his deputy, Dr Alex Boraine, will officiate on the first day of the Bloemfontein hearings.
NB: The Blomfontein Hearings will be preceeded by a special inter-faith church service at the City Hall on Sunday June 30, From 1pm - to pray for victims + their families.
Among cases of human rights abuses that will be heard over the three-day period, will be cases of torture, murders, disappearences, massacres, excessive ill-treatment etc.
These hearings will be followed by yet another victim-hearing which will be held at the Pietermaritzburg City Hall over three days, from July 23 to July 25. It will be remembered that the bulk of gross violations, especially in the 80's, took place in the Natal Midlands in general and Pietermaritzburg in particular.
The Maritzburg hearings will unfortunately coincide with the very first regional Amnesty hearings, where perpetrators are expected to pour their hearts out, and confess to the world their evil deeds, in the hope that they would subsequently be granted amnesty.
The regions first amnesty hearings will be held in Kroonstad in the Free State from July 22 to July 26. These hearings will be held at the Mphohadi College of Education in Maokeng Township in Kroonstad. Some of the most interesting cases are scheduled to be held during these hearings.
Apart from victim hearings and amnesty hearings that are scheduled to be heard, this region is also planning to hold a series of what is now known as EVENT HEARINGS, in which events of gross human rights violations against whole communities and or groups of people will be brought to life.
Event hearings that the region has targeted, include the Trust Feed Massacre, The A-Team reign of terror in Bloemfontein, the "7-Day War" in Pietermaritzburg, Richmond attacks that left scores dead and thousands displaced and a host of other cases.
ATTACHED, FIND THE KWAZULU-NATAL/FREE STATE REGION FROM JUNE 1996 TO MARCH 1997. I will notify you in time in case of any changes that may have to be schedule.
Kwa-Zulu-Natal - Free State Region Hearing Schedule
May 1996
29:Briefing in Bethlehem 30:Briefing in Bloemfontein 31:Statement taking training in Free State
June 1996
1:Statement taking training in Free State 4-7:Statement training workshop in Pietermaritzburg
July 1996
2-4:Hearing in Bloemfontein 23-25: Hearing in Pietermaritzburg
August 1996
1-2;Hearings in Durban 12-13:Hearings in Port Shepstone 29-30:Hearing in Durban
September 1996
11-12:Hearings in Newcastle 25-27:Event Hearings in Durban
October 1996
10-11:Hearings in Free State 22-23:Event Hearings in Durban
November 1996 6-7:Hearings in Empangeni 19-21:Event Hearing in Pietermaritzburg: 7 Day War
December 1996
4-5:Hearings in Free State 17-18:Hearings in Durban
January 1997
16-17:Hearings in Estcourt 29-30:Hearings in Durban
February 1997
11-12:Hearings in Kokstad 27-28:Hearings in Durban
March 1997
12-13:Hearings in Free State
The promotion of National and Unity Reconciliation Act was passed into law on July 27, 1995.
The law flowed from the injunction in the interim constitution that Parliament should provide a mechanism to grant amnesty to people on both sides of the apartheid struggle who committed gross violations of human rights.
The purpose of the TRC, as stated in the preamble to the act, is to establish as complete a picture as possible of the nature, causes and extent of gross violations of human rights committed between March 1960 and December 5 1993. (The earlier date is seen as the start of the armed struggle against apartheid while the latter was the date on which the National Party handed over power to the multi-party Transitional Executive Council.
The commission is also charged with establishing the fate of victims of the apartheid conflict, affording these victims an opportunity to relate their stories in public and recommend measures Parliament can take to grant reparation and some form of rehabilitation to victims.
The act gives the commission 18 months from its establishment last November to complete its task and another three months to write its final report. These deadlines could be extended by 6 months by Parliament.
The commission has been devided into three subcommittees THE HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATION COMMITTEE (HRV), THE REPARATION AND REHABILITATION COMMITTEE (R&R) and the AMNESTY COMMITTEE (AC).
The TRC is composed of a team of 17 commissioners supplemented by 12 other selected committee members functioning within the above-mentioned 3 standing committees and one (1) INVESTIGATIVE UNIT (IU).
Through its HRV Committee, the TRC shall amongst others hold victim-friendly public hearings to give the victims, survivors and perpetrators of gross human rights violations an opportunity to tell their stories. Through its IU the TRC is able to search and investigate reported acts of violations, including torture, death in detention, severe ill-treatment etc. Through the R&R the commission shall clamour to provide immediate interim reparative measures to victims and survivors of human rights violations and recommend policy directions to the President to help prevent similar and future acts of violations. Through the AC the commission holds public hearings to consider amnesty applications from perpetrators upon their full disclosures and acknowledgement of the committed acts.
COMMITTEE ON REPARATION AND REHABILITATION
The main function of this committee is to consider the plight of victims referred to it by the other two committees. Any person who is of the opinion that he or she has suffered harm as a result of a gross violation of human rights may apply to the committee for reparation. After investigating the claim the committee may recommend appropriate reparation to the victims. The commission always uses the world "reparation" rather than "compensation" because it realises that it would never be in a position to be able to fully compensate victims, financially or otherwise, for the harm they suffered. 19 June 1996