Amnesty Hearings — Cape Town — 1999-10-20

MR WILLIAMS: As it pleases the Committee.   Mr Chairman, I will submit that in essence what is required of the applicant is that he should make a full disclosure of the incidents in respect of which he is applying for amnesty and that it should be politically motivated.   Your Worship, I think it is common cause that full disclosure had been made.  One of the victims in one of the incidents, are here today and he does not dispute the, he does not dispute the facts as portrayed by the applicant.   With regard to the other incident, the sabotage incident, there is nothing to controvert the evidence of the applicant in that regard.   It is also clear from the applicant himself that the incident was not driven for financial reward or because of spite, ill-will or malice.   It is also clear from the applicant's testimony that they pursued a political agenda.  Mr Chairman, I want to submit that the fact that the targets here, the chosen target was a Rent Office or the Civic Centre in the one instance, and in the other instance, it was a police station involving police officers and also the Regional Services Council, that does not detract from the fact that his actions were politically driven.   It is on record that the ANC during the time, or before these acts were committed, made a call for its members and supporters to make the country ungovernable and they specifically included institutions like the Rent Office, the Civic Centre as legitimate targets for attacks, and I think that is also contained in their submission or the further submission to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.   In as much as the applicant and the members  of his political organisation heeded the calls to make the country ungovernable through these measures, the same is a political objective.   The call for better facilities or access to certain facilities cannot be separated from the general apartheid institution, because the resultant effects of apartheid was that it (indistinct) certain facilities to the vast majority of the population and that is then also why the applicant and his fellow members, decided to mobilise around bread and butter issues in order to generate support for themselves in the community.      In conclusion I wish to state that the applicant participated in these incidents in a bona fide manner, pursuing political objectives and as a result thereof, amnesty should be granted to him.  Thank you Mr Chairman.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you Mr Williams.  Ms Patel, have you got any submissions?

MS PATEL: Thank you honourable Chairperson.  No, except to state that we support the submissions made by my learned colleague, thank you.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you Ms Patel.  I assume you wouldn't have anything further to add, Mr Williams?

MR WILLIAMS: That is correct Mr Chairman.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you very much.  Yes.  This concludes the evidence and the formal proceedings in this application.  The Panel will formulate a decision and will communicate that to the parties as soon as it is available.   We will under those circumstances then reserve the decision in the matter and conclude by saying that it is encouraging to note the attitudes of both the applicant and Mr Tarentaal and we express the wish that your participation in these proceedings today, would serve to further strengthen this attitude and possibly assist in enhancing the similar attitude on the part of those people with whom you are in close contact in your circumstances in Dysselsdorp.  We thank  you for participating and Mr Williams as well, thank you for your assistance.

MR WILLIAMS: Thank you Mr Chairman.

CHAIRPERSON: Ms Patel, I was told that the other matters that we have, the other matter that we had on the roll for, initially for tomorrow which we had hoped that we would be able to bring forward to today, has presented some difficulties and it looks as if we are in a position where we will have to deal with that tomorrow morning?

MS PATEL: That is indeed so honourable Chairperson.  I have endeavoured to try to bring that matter forward to this afternoon, but without any success.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes.   Thank you very much for your efforts in that regard in any event, but we understand that it is not always possible to rearrange these things at very short notice.  That would then conclude the matters that are on the roll for today?

MS PATEL: That is correct honourable Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes.  Well, under those circumstances we will have to adjourn the proceedings.  We will deal with the remaining matter on our roll tomorrow morning when we will reconvene here at nine o'clock.  We are adjourned.
COMMITTEE ADJOURNS