South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has ordered a significant inquiry. This inquiry will probe allegations that past governments, led by his own African National Congress (ANC), deliberately obstructed investigations and prosecutions of crimes committed during the apartheid era. This landmark decision follows decades of demands from survivors and families seeking accountability for atrocities.
The inquiry aims to address serious accusations of “improper influence” that allegedly hindered the pursuit of justice for apartheid victims. These allegations target post-apartheid administrations led by the ANC, the very party that spearheaded the fight against white minority rule. The announcement of this judicial commission comes as part of a settlement in a recent court case.
Twenty-five survivors and relatives of apartheid victims initiated legal action in January. They claimed that successive South African governments, since the late 1990s, failed to act on the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. This commission, established in 1996, aimed to expose apartheid-era crimes, offering amnesty to some perpetrators who confessed. However, many were denied amnesty, and numerous cases remain unresolved.
Among the prominent unresolved cases is the 1985 abduction and murder of the Cradock Four, anti-apartheid activists whose deaths remain shrouded in mystery. Lukhanyo Calata, son of slain activist Fort Calata, was part of the group that sued the government. He asserted that administrations following President Thabo Mbeki’s tenure failed to deliver justice.
While the majority of apartheid victims were Black, the pursuit of justice transcends racial lines. The recent court case included white survivors of the 1993 Highgate Hotel Massacre, where five people were killed. Inquests into both the Cradock Four killings and the Highgate Hotel Massacre are now underway, signaling a renewed effort to confront the ghosts of South Africa’s past.