The African National Congress (ANC) has approached 16 universities to seek access to archives and volunteers to assist in prosecuting the alleged perpetrators of apartheid-era crimes.
According to a report in City Press, the ANC has been moved to action following a call by Yasmin Sooka, former commissioner on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and now head of the Foundation for Human Rights, for action to be taken against those alleged to have been responsible for abuses prior to the transition to democracy.
The TRC was empowered to grant amnesty from prosecution to perpetrators who made ‘full disclosure’ of their misdeeds (and met certain criteria). However, amnesty was not sought or not obtained in respect of numerous instances.
Little progress has been made on prosecutions in the intervening years. Indifferent political will and outright political interference have been cited as the reasons for this.
Krish Naidoo, an ANC legal advisor, said: ‘Since 2003, insufficient attention has been paid by the ANC to giving that closure to families of apartheid-era crimes. The ANC has no knowledge of whether such lethargy arose from political interference.’
The party has reportedly secured pledges of assistance from some 150 law students at the University of the Western Cape.
It is unclear how this would move forward, but the report suggested that the intention would be to ‘privately prosecute’ offenders.
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