President Cyril Ramaphosa to establish Commission of Inquiry into delay in investigation and prosecution of TRC cases
President Cyril Ramaphosa is in the process of establishing a judicial commission of inquiry to establish whether attempts were made to prevent the investigation or prosecution of apartheid-era crimes referred by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to the National Prosecuting Authority.
Allegations of improper influence in delaying or hindering the investigation and prosecution of apartheid-era crimes have persisted from previous administrations. Through this commission, President Ramaphosa is determined that the true facts be established and the matter brought to finality.
The establishment of the commission of inquiry is the outcome of settlement discussions in a court application brought by families of victims of apartheid-era crimes.
MEDIA ARTICLES:
Mbeki accused of trying to save his reputation by intervening in apartheid lawsuit – report
The son of a former anti-apartheid activist has accused former president Thabo Mbeki of trying to “shield his reputation” by intervening in a lawsuit against the government for failing to investigate and prosecute crimes committed during apartheid.
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/mbeki-accused-trying-save-reputation-intervening-apartheid-lawsuit/
Justice or diversion? Saftu challenges Ramaphosa’s inquiry into TRC prosecutions
The South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) has criticised President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to establish a new commission of inquiry to investigate why the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) were never implemented.
Saftu views this move as a wasteful and cynical attempt to avoid accountability, branding it “a bizarre and shameful spectacle of the state appointing a commission to investigate itself for its failure to act on the findings of a previous commission.”
The announcement comes as Ramaphosa moves to establish a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate whether government officials obstructed the investigation or prosecution of apartheid-era crimes.
‘We’ll still meet you in court, Cyril’
THE families and survivors of apartheid-era crimes have rejected the President’s proposal that the inquiry into alleged improper influence in delaying or hindering the investigation and prosecution of these crimes also address the declaration of their rights and their constitutional damages claims.
Their reasoning is clear, a commission of inquiry lacks the legal authority to determine rights or grant remedies.
Poetic Licence: Murderers confessed and walked free
Inquiry into unprosecuted TRC cases meant to bring families closure, says Ramaphosa
EWN: Nokukhanya Mntambo 2 May 2025
MPUMALANGA – President Cyril Ramaphosa has said that the newly announced commission of inquiry into unprosecuted Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) cases is a fact-finding mission meant to bring closure to families who lost loved ones during apartheid.
After its completion in 2003, the TRC referred more than 400 cases to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
Ramaphosa must act quickly on new TRC inquiry to shore up its credibility, say families of apartheid-era victims
DAILY MAVERICK: Story by
Over the past five years, families of victims, civil society organisations and individuals have consistently called for the establishment of such a commission of inquiry.
Hours after President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the establishment of a commission of inquiry into the long-standing delays in Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) case investigations and prosecutions, families and human rights lawyers said they now want him to announce the commission’s terms of reference and name those who will be appointed to lead it.
Ramaphosa’s Inquiry into TRC prosecutions: A step towards justice or a PR move?
President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced the establishment of a commission of inquiry to investigate why apartheid-era crimes, referred to by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), have not been prosecuted.
This decision follows a lawsuit filed by 25 families of victims who allege that top government officials obstructed cases referred by the TRC to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). The inquiry aims to address long-standing grievances over the lack of accountability for human rights abuses during apartheid.
TRC cases: New commission must re-affirm political accountability
2 May 2025 GOOD PARTY
While the GOOD Party welcomes the President’s announcement of the establishment of a commission of inquiry into alleged political interference in the execution of justice, the commission must not further delay the process of holding the perpetrators of apartheid-era crimes accountable. The NPA must proceed with urgency to prosecute the TRC-recommended cases it still can.
Press Release: PROGRESS UPDATE: CONSTITUTIONAL DAMAGES & COMMISSION OF INQUIRY CASE
PROGRESS UPDATE: CONSTITUTIONAL DAMAGES & COMMISSION OF INQUIRY CASE
PARTIES AGREE TO ESTABLISH A COMMISSION OF INQUIRY INTO THE ALLEGED POLITICAL INTERFERENCE IN THE TRC CASES
PARTIES ARE DEADLOCKED ON THE BALANCE OF THE RELIEF
The families and survivors of apartheid-era gross violations and the Foundation for Human Rights (hereinafter referred jointly as “applicants”) who sued the President and the government for constitutional damages in January 2025 welcome the undertaking of the President to establish a commission of inquiry to investigate the alleged political interference in TRC cases. However, they reject the President’s proposal for the commission to deal with the declaration of their rights and the constitutional damages claim since a commission has no power to determine rights and remedies.
VIDEO CLIPS
Remains of anti-apartheid activists recovered – NPA
Remains of anti-apartheid activists recovered – NPA
NPA’s Missing Persons Task Team plays crucial role in tracing and recovering remains of anti-apartheid activists
The National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) Missing Persons Task Team, in collaboration with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Unit, has successfully traced and recovered the remains of anti-apartheid activists, Benjamin Malesella Moloise and Abraham Zakhele Mngomezulu. Their remains were exhumed from pauper graves in Mamelodi, Pretoria where they were buried without the consent of their families after being executed for politically motivated offences in October 1985 and May 1989 respectively.
https://www.politicsweb.co.za/politics/remains-of-antiapartheid-activists-recovered–npa
APARTHEID CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY
Apartheid on Trial: The COSAS 4 Prosecution and the Direct Application of Customary International Law in South Africa
1 May 2025 Written by Miles Jackson and Hannah Woolaver
On 14 April 2025, the High Court in South Africa handed down judgment in a challenge by two accused to charges brought against them by South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). The charges concern an attack on 15 February 1982 by the South African Police on the COSAS 4—Eustice Madikela, Peter Matabane, Fanyana Nhlapo and Zandisile Musi—members of COSAS, a national student movement opposed to apartheid. Madikela, Matabane and Nhlapo were killed; Musi was seriously injured.
Criminal Court in South Africa Confirms Charges in Historic First Prosecution of the Crime Against Humanity of Apartheid
29 April 2025: [Gerhard Kemp is professor of criminal law at UWE Bristol, and extraordinary professor of public law at Stellenbosch University]
On Monday, 14 April 2025, the high court in Johannesburg issued an important ruling in the historic first criminal prosecution of two individuals for the crime against humanity of apartheid. The ruling is a significant victory for the prosecuting authority, civil society and for the victims of apartheid.
https://opiniojuris.org/2025/04/29/criminal-court-in-south-africa-confirms-charges-in-historic-first-prosecution-of-the-crime-against-humanity-of-apartheid/
Discussion | Courts rules apartheid is a crime against humanity
CAPE TOWN – The High Court IN Johannesburg has ruled that apartheid is a crime against humanity and there is no statute of limitations on prosecuting such crimes.
The case involved Tlhomedi Ephraim Mfalapitsa and Christian Siebert Rorich’s criminal trial. They are accused of murder and kidnapping as crimes against humanity, and apartheid. Constitutional Law Expert, Prof. Pierre de Vos spoke to eNCA.
https://www.enca.com/videos/discussion-courts-rules-apartheid-crime-against-humanity
UDM Hails Landmark Ruling Allowing Prosecution of Apartheid Crimes
23 April 2025 By Quan Dambuza
The United Democratic Movement (UDM) has welcomed a historic ruling by the Johannesburg High Court, which confirmed that apartheid-era crimes can still be prosecuted, regardless of the time elapsed. The court ruled that apartheid constitutes a crime against humanity and that justice for such atrocities has no expiry date under international law.
https://pondolandtimes.co.za/udm-hails-landmark-ruling-allowing-prosecution-of-apartheid-crimes/
The Helen Suzman Foundation (HSF) has welcomed the landmark judgment in the COSAS 4 matter, saying it reflects a commitment to accountability for the harms of the past and upholds the principle that such crimes are not subject to prescription.
22 April 2025
