Amnesty Hearings — Bloemfontein — 1998-08-17

CHAIRPERSON: ...[inaudible] the public who have been waiting here this morning for this hearing, the delay appears to have been caused by the aircraft in which one of my Committee Members came down, by it's electronic device which has been unable to distinguish whether a door was open or not, but we are all here now and I hope we can continue and carry on with no further interruptions.  I'm sorry.

MR STEENKAMP: Thank you Mr Chairman, Honourable Members.  The first matter or the matter for today on the roll is that of the applicant of Mr de Ru.  I can maybe just add that Mr de Ru is Afrikaans speaking but we're ready to proceed Mr Chairman.

MR MADASA: Thank you Mr Chair.  Mr Chair I appear on behalf of the applicant.

CHAIRPERSON: Will you give your name for the sake of the record please?

MR MADASA: I'm Advocate Z.L. Madasa from the Johannesburg Bar.

CHAIRPERSON: Instructed by?

MR DE KOCK: Thank you Mr Chair, I'm Francois van Zyl de Kock, I'm from Rooth and Wessels Attorneys.

CHAIRPERSON: Perhaps, I don't know if it's the practice here, it's certainly the practice we've been asked to do elsewhere in all the other - well to start with the Committee, the Committee consists of myself, Advocate Sogodi and Mr Wynand Malan.  This is the application of Mr de Ru.  We have had the identification of his legal advisors.  Could the rest of you please put yourself on record?

MR COETZEE: I'm Advocate S.J. Coetzee.  I'm appearing on behalf of the implicated party of Mr Chris Fouche.  I'm instructed by the Attorneys firm Botha, Du Plessis and Kruger from Johannesburg.

MR JOUBERT: Thank you Mr Chairperson, I'm Advocate J. M. K. Joubert, I'm appearing on behalf of Isak van der Merwe an implicated person in this matter.  Thank you.

MR STEENKAMP: Mr Chairman, I'm Andre Steenkamp, I'm appearing on behalf of the victims in this matter.  I'm also the evidence leader in this matter.

CHAIRPERSON: Carry on.

MR MADASA: Thank you Mr Chair.  Mr Chair with your permission, the applicant's application and the form is before the Commission and so I propose to go straight to the issues with the applicant.

CHAIRPERSON: You propose to call the applicant now?

MR MADASA: Thank you Mr Chair.

JACOBUS JOHANNES DE RU: (sworn states)
	I am an applicant, Jacobus Johannes de Ru and according to the bundle page 1, my application is in front of you.  At present I am in prison in the Green Point in Vereeniging.  I was a member of the South African Police and specifically the Detective Unit in Sasolburg where I was a Captain.  I did twenty years of service and my force number was 00693260 and I'm asking you amnesty for three charges of murder.
	I refer you to the second bundle, page 1, where you will find the charge sheet as it was put out by the High Supreme Court and you will see it there.  I do not know whether you want me to read this out loud?

CHAIRPERSON: What is the second bundle?

JACOBUS JOHANNES DE RU: It's that one there.

CHAIRPERSON: That's an affidavit?

JACOBUS JOHANNES DE RU: That is correct, Chairperson.  Would you like me to read it out loud or is it not necessary?
	I confirm the contents on page 1.  Your Honour, the date on which this took place was 1992, April 7th and it took place at Sentra Hypersave, that's a business complex in Vaalpark, Sasolburg in the Free state.  Your Honour, what happened there, like I've said before, I was a commander of the Detective Branch at Sasolburg.  Round about December 1991 and January 1992 an informant came to talk to me with regards to certain illegal diamond transactions.  Because of the fact that we did not deal with these kind of matters I contacted the Gold and Diamond Branch in Randburg in order to be of assistance to us.  She was helped by them and I accepted that she was happy with the course of events which happened afterwards.
	It was round about two months later that she contacted me again and then told me that she was not happy with the way the specific unit handle things because she did not receive any reparation.  She also gave me information with regards to illegal firearm transactions.  I contacted the Gold and Diamond Branch in Welcome to help her.

MR MADASA: Sorry Mr de Ru, who is she?  Who is the person you are referring to?

JACOBUS JOHANNES DE RU: Mrs Elsa de Lange.

MR MADASA: Did you know her before?

JACOBUS JOHANNES DE RU: I only met her that day, December when she arrived at my office.

MR MADASA: Did you know where she worked?

JACOBUS JOHANNES DE RU: As far as I know she was unemployed.

MR MADASA: Alright,  Continue?

JACOBUS JOHANNES DE RU: Thank you.  Your honour, she informed me that certain gang members as mentioned were involved in the illegal distribution and buying of firearms, amongst others, AK guns, hand grenades, explosives and I told her that I'd try to use the firearm units to help her.  As far as I know she was also informed by the Gold and Diamond Branch to deal with the firearms unit in Eikenhof.
	Round about the last week of March 1992 Mrs de Lange came to me again and asked me if I could not help her to infiltrate the so called gang.  She also explained to me it was very dangerous for her as a woman to go and do this questioning because all of this happened in the Black areas.	Detective Sergeant Chris Fouche, I introduced him to her and Fouche was a member of the Detective Branch in Sasolburg.

MR MADASA: Just before you come to that, did you question De Lange as to her association with these people, who those people were that she was telling you about?