TRC - CONSENSUS HAD DEVELOPED AROUND THE ISSUE (OF A SEPARATE TRUTH COMMISSION FOR DOCTORS)
Issued by: Truth and Reconciliation Commission
STATEMENT BY DR WENDY ORR OF THE TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION
THURSDAY 24 OCTOBER 1996
The statement by Dr Bernard Mandell, newly appointed President of the World Medical Association (WMA), that consensus had developed around the issue (of a separate truth commission for doctors) is premature in that it pre-empts the proceedings of a national consultative workshop on November 23 this year. He was quoted as saying that there is consensus among his peers that it would therefore be unnecessary to have a separate truth commission.
Because there is still considerable debate and disagreement within the profession as to how best the past can be examined and a future human rights culture ensured within the profession, the TRC will be facilitating this workshop which aims to bring about a consensus amongst the various groupings as to what process should be implemented.
The outcome of this workshop is by no means a foregone conclusion, as Dr Mandell seems to imply.
Dr Orr, who is the deputy chairperson of the TRC's Reparation and Rehabilitation Committee, leaves this week for London where she was invited by the British Medical Association (BMA) to act as consultant on issues relating to the medical profession and human rights. She is also a member of the Medical Association of South Africas ethics committee.