Special Hearings — Armed Forces Hearings — 1997-10-08

CHAIRPERSON: If the photographers and those who are filming would now begin to end please, so that we can make a start.  I think we've been fairly generous with our time.  I thank you very much for your co-operation, I appreciate that.  I would like to extend a very warm word of welcome to all who are present at this hearing today, in particular I'd like to welcome General Meiring of the SANDF and General Viljoen, who will be making a presentation very soon - former head of the SADF and will be speaking specifically on that area and the past.
 Several others will also be participating in the hearing and to all of you, we are grateful and appreciative of your co-operation.  It is our hope that we are going to have a very productive day, a day where we hear each other, where we assemble information which is demanded of the Commission by our founding act.  And that is all we are looking forward to receiving.  In particular we are anxious to know the perceptions and the motivations, the planning throughout the period of conflict.  We have asked exactly the same questions of other key role players in that conflict and will continue to do so during the course of this week.
 Yesterday for example, we listened to the APLA commanders, former APLA commanders and members of the PAC, tomorrow we will have representation from the former South African police and on Friday, former leaders of MK so that throughout the week we'll be trying to assemble a picture which will assist us in making our final report to President Mandela and of course to Parliament, which is demanded of us.
 I would like to introduce the panel.  On my right is Ms Hlengiwe Mkhize who is Chairperson of our Reparation and Rehabilitation Committee and a Commissioner who resides normally in Gauteng but like all of us travels extensively around the country.  On my far left is Mr Ilan Lax from Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu Natal, based in Durban who is a Committee member and a member of our Human Rights Violations Committee and has joined the panel for these two days.  On my immediate left is Mr Dumisa Ntsebeza who is head of our investigative unit, a Commission based in Cape Town.  My name is Alex Boraine, I'm acting Chairperson of the Commission.  Archbishop Tutu is outside of the country at the moment and will be returning only at the weekend.  
 I would like to also welcome members of the media without whom our work would be far less we think, particularly in terms of involving not only those who are here today, but so many people across the nation, both in terms of radio coverage, in terms of TV and the print media.  I'd like to say a special word of welcome to the interpreters, I think we forget sometimes the huge and excellent job that they do.  And whilst I'm talking about them, may I remind you that translation is available in English Afrikaans and Xhosa, so hand set are available - headsets are available.  
 I hope you won't take them away with you, they will be of no help to you outside of this building but please make use of this if they become necessary for you.   And just a more frivolous announcement, I'd be grateful if all cell phones including General Meiring's, can now be switched off.  I have switched mine of and I'm sure everybody will do that.  We will adjourn for tea but we'll be slightly flexible to see what progress we've made, but approximately around half past 10 and then we will adjourn for lunch at 1 o'clock.  And we hope to conclude - and we'll be grateful for your co-operation, to conclude around about 4 o'clock because of other commitments, both by the panel and indeed by those who are with us today.
 I'm going to invite now General Viljoen to make a presentation but I'm not sure if General Meiring - yes, General Meiring you have the floor, if you'll just press the red button.

JOHAN LODEWYK MEIRING: Thank you.  Honourable Chairperson and Commissioners, due to the criticism of the first submission made by the former South African defence force and after correspondence with Doctor Boraine of the Commission, it was decided that a second submission was necessary.  As Chief of the South African National defence force, I've facilitated this by calling up a group of retired members of the former South African defence force to prepare this submission.
 This in itself was problematic Sir, as many former members do not wish to become involved due to an inherent distrust of the TRC.  It should also be borne in mind that not everything which occurred in the past was documented.  It was thus necessary to rely largely on the memory of these former members.  I've corresponded on numerous occasions with the TRC through Doctor Boraine, requesting that the TRC provided us with an indication of those issues which the Commission would like us to address in the second submission.  
 There was no active material response to these requests, all we received were the documents attached to the Section 29 and Section 13 notices which naturally made our preparations that much more difficult.  And led not only our being in a position to present this document only today.  Due to the time restrictions which you have placed on the presentation, it is assumed that further questions arise from this.  I undertake as far as possible Sir to answer these questions within 39 days of receipt if there are any elaborate questions concerning this.
 Chairperson, I request you to read this submission not in isolation, it should be read in conjunction with the first submission which was made as well as the numerous answers posed to the questions after the hearing of the first submission.  In effect those three elements, the submission today and the first submission and the answers to the questions, questions and answers, make up the entire submission of the former SADF.
 The new submission has been prepared in co-operation with the four previous chiefs of the South African defence force and I'm honoured to have three of my predecessors here today.  Unfortunately General Malan is not able to attend, due to being overseas at the present moment in time.  For your information Sirs, the following are the terms of office of my predecessors:
General Malan, from 1976 to 1980
General Viljoen, from 1980 to 1985
General Geldenhuys, from 1985 to 1990
General Liebenberg, from 1990 to 1993
My own term as Chief of the South African defence force was from November '93 to April '94, whereupon in May '94, I was given the job of being the Chief of the South African National defence force.
 It's now my pleasure to hand over to General Viljoen, who will present the South African Defence Force submission.  So, I thank you and ask to be excused for a few minutes and I'll be back again, thank you very much.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you very much General Meiring, we appreciate that and of course you are excused.  And General Viljoen, you have the floor and a very warm welcome again.

GEN VILJOEN: Chairperson, thank you very much.  I will do the first part of my presentation in Afrikaans and then I'll switch over to English.

CHAIRPERSON: General Viljoen excuse me, two things, (1) we'd like to swear you in before you commence your report and (2) I hope that we're going to get a copy of that report before you start.  And I'll ask Mr Ntsebeza to do the swearing in, thank you.

MR NTSEBEZA: Thank you Mr Chair.

GEN CONSTAND VILJOEN: (sworn states)

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you Mr Ntsebeza.  General Viljoen, it's over to you.