Human Rights Violation Hearings — Alexandra — 1996-10-30

MR LEWIN: Kenneth I would like to thank you very much for coming here this afternoon and for talking to us in that way and telling us your story because I think that in many ways it is fitting that you are the last witness that we have heard in these three days in Alex.  I am not sure if you have seen or heard of what has happened in the other two
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days but we have heard a number of stories about what has been happening or what has happened in Alex over the last  25 years or so.  It has been a very difficult time often I think for all of us who have been present but I think that it has been particularly moving to hear the different stories, to hear the different histories of what has happened and to see how much has actually happened and how much pain and suffering that has taken place in such a small area, such a very together area, which is Alex.  You know there have been people who have lost their children, there have been people who have lost their husbands, their wives, there have been people who have terrible stories to tell and who have helped us to understand better what they experienced through telling those stories.  What you have told in fact is an example of all of those stories because you are still here to tell your story even though in a sense you have lost part of your life through what has happened to you and I would like to salute you for your courage in staying alive, in continuing, in battling and coming to tell us this story because I think that that shows us the way forward, that we don't give up, that we try and overcome the difficulties, that we bring our differences into the open and talk about them as we have been doing these last few days and I would like to thank you very much for coming because we have come to the end of these three days in Alex, which as I say has been a very moving time for all of us and on behalf of the Commission I would like to thank those people who have helped make this what is essentially only the beginning of a process.  This isn't the end of the Truth Commission in Alex.  This is only really the beginning.  The life of the Commission continues for more than another 12
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months.  The life of the Commission will continue up until the end of next year so that the process that we have begun today, in the last three days, is really only the beginning of a process.  We would appeal to people please to come forward with more stories.  I think that you have seen everyone who has attended, and thank you for attending, the people who have attended have seen the power of this process, the way in which this process works, how it actually helps to hear these stories.  That is something that I think all of us have been touched by, have seen that power.  So please we ask people don't think this is the end of the process, this is really only the beginning and we are appealing to a large number of other people to come forward.  We are appealing for more statements about human rights violations of the sort that we have heard over the last three days.  We are also appealing, as there was an appeal from the police this morning, an appeal to the people who are called the perpetrators, the people who did these things.  There is a very desperate appeal to all of them to come forward and explain, apply for amnesty and then explain why they did what they did.  Explain the circumstances.  If they want to apply for amnesty they don't have a great deal of time.  They have only until the beginning of December so it is really only about six weeks at the most that these people have that opportunity to come forward to apply for amnesty.  Because if they apply for amnesty then there is the possibility of indemnity and immunity from prosecution.  But we are appealing please to those people to come forward and tell us what was the reason behind what they did.  We on our side, we will continue with the investigations that have been set off by the stories that we have heard, also by all
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the other statements that we have heard.  Because there is no difference for us as a Commission, between the statements of those who appear in public and the statements of those who have made the statements.  We treat all the statements equally.   But before we close I have made the one appeal for more statements on human rights violations and please amnesty applications.  All statements from people explaining why they did what they did, even if they don't feel they need to apply for amnesty.

MR LEWIN: .

YASMINE SOOKA: I think we have all heard that there have been a number of names that have come forward consistently in the statements of those witnesses who have come forward.  The matters will be handed over to our investigation unit and if people don't come forward voluntarily to explain their version we will issue subpoenas to make sure that we do get that version.  So before we come to you we appeal to you to come in and make your own statement.  Thank you.