“Why has no ANC member been prosecuted for the murder of my father, and where is his body?” asks son of innocent civilian murdered by the ANC in 1978
The family of Jaap van der Merwe, a civilian murdered by ANC insurgents near the Botswana border in 1978, has officially requested AfriForum to help find answers about possible political interference that has prevented the prosecution of an identified suspect in this case and then-ANC leaders. Van der Merwe’s body has never been found.
One of the surviving suspects in the case, who at the time used the pseudonym John Msibi, did not apply for amnesty before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and is still alive. His identity is known to the authorities. Despite his alleged involvement in the murder and the fact that he did not receive amnesty, Msibi was apparently employed by the state security services under the ANC government.
An affidavit from Van der Merwe’s son, Cilliers, in which he demands answers and justice, is included in AfriForum’s submission to the Khampepe Commission, which begins its sessions tomorrow (Monday, 10 November) in Pretoria. The commission was established after pressure from, among others, the family of the Cradock Four and aims to investigate why individuals responsible for political crimes during the apartheid era, are not prosecuted despite not receiving amnesty.
Van der Merwe was murdered on 1 November 1978 when he offered a ride to ANC insurgents who pretended to be hitchhikers. One ANC insurgent shot Van der Merwe in the back unprovoked and, after he fell forward, turned around and shot him in the face.
These events and the names of the suspects were later confirmed by an ANC member. The telescope from Van der Merwe’s hunting rifle, which was stolen during the attack, was also later found in an ANC weapons cache. The TRC categorised the murder as the work of ANC members.
Van der Merwe’s widow, Susan, who died three years ago, and the couple’s five children have never been able to find closure, as a funeral could never be held and no justice was served.
Kallie Kriel, CEO of AfriForum, requested the commission in an affidavit on behalf of the organisation, in terms of the principle of equality before the law, to ensure that all families of victims who were murdered in ANC acts of terror also receive answers as to why no ANC member or leader was prosecuted for their acts.
Kriel also specifically requested the commission to provide answers as to why no ANC leader was prosecuted for the murder of Dirk van Eck’s wife, Kobie, and their two children, Nelmarie (8) and Nasie (2). Kobie, Nelmarie and Nasie were killed in an ANC landmine attack in December 1985. Van Eck had already asked AfriForum to assist in ensuring justice for these murders in 2007. However, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is currently focusing only on prosecuting members of the previous dispensation’s security forces and refuses to prosecute ANC members for their crimes.
The Van der Merwe family has given Adv. Gerrie Nel and his team at AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit an official mandate to apply pressure for the establishment of a judicial inquiry into Van der Merwe’s death, similar to the recent judicial inquiries into the deaths of the Cradock Four and anti-apartheid activist Ahmed Timol.
According to Kriel, there is clearly a deliberate failure to conduct a judicial inquiry after 47 years. “The NPA’s failure is probably part of a political motive not to conduct a formal judicial inquiry in a timely manner, while witnesses and persons of interest are still alive,” he explains.
The NPA’s evidently deliberate strategy of not also paying attention to cases in which ANC members or leaders were the perpetrators disregards the pain and dignity of the families of the victims of the ANC’s acts of terror, Kriel believes.
“The NPA and the ANC are currently making a deliberate attempt to focus media attention solely on the crimes of former security forces, while ANC acts of terror are simply swept under the rug. The ANC is demonstrating disrespect and insensitivity towards the families of victims of its acts of terror by attempting to silence those demanding justice for these families by portraying the pursuit of justice as an act of ‘racism’. The ANC’s attack on AfriForum in this regard in a media statement on 13 October is an example of this,” adds Kriel.
In his affidavit, Kriel informs the Khampepe Commission that clear evidence shows political interference within the NPA prevents the prosecution of ANC leaders. For example, Adv. Paul Fick SC, who was employed by the NPA before his retirement, indicated during a recent conversation with Kriel that he had received instructions from Adv. Bulelani Ngcuka, the then National Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), to not further investigate the involvement of ANC leaders in acts of terror. The dossiers were subsequently returned to the South African Police Service (SAPS) without any prosecution.
Col. Tollie Vreugdenburg, a retired NPA investigator who was involved in the investigation into the murder of Van der Merwe at the time, also confirmed to Kriel that Adv. Chris Macadam, a senior member of the NPA, had shown no appetite to investigate ANC members.
Adv. Vusi Pikoli, former DPO, also indicated in an affidavit in support of the families of anti-apartheid activists’ case that political interference prevented prosecuting cases referred to the NPA by the TRC for further investigation and prosecution. This includes cases against ANC leaders.
Background
In its final report the TRC stated: “[T]he Commission found the ANC to be responsible for a range of gross human rights violations arising out of unplanned operations; the bombing of public buildings, restaurants, hotels and bars; the landmine campaign in the northern and north-eastern parts of South Africa.”
The infiltration of ANC members from the Botswana border that led to Van der Merwe’s death took place on the orders of senior ANC leadership. The landmine attacks of which the TRC found the ANC guilty also followed a decision taken by ANC leaders in June 1985 at the organisation’s National Conference in Kabwe, Zambia. That meeting determined that the distinction between hard and soft targets should disappear and that acts of terror would also be carried out by means of landmine attacks as part of the ANC’s landmine campaign, known as Operation Cetshwayo.
The decisions and actions taken were in violation of Protocol I of the Geneva Convention, which expressly prohibits the targeting of civilians and the use of methods such as landmine attacks that do not distinguish between civilian and military targets. The acts of terror took place despite the fact that the ANC had already signed this protocol in 1980.
Following the Kabwe Conference, the majority of the ANC’s terror acts targeted civilians. The ANC and its allies were responsible for hundreds of civilian deaths, including approximately 700 necklacings (in which a burning tyre was placed around the victim’s neck), approximately 400 other live burnings and almost 250 murders due to bomb explosions and shootings.
The ANC has on several occasions mentioned many of the acts of terror for which they were responsible in their publications, such as Sechaba and Mayibuye.
