A South African court has reopened an inquest into the death of anti-apartheid leader Steve Biko, exactly 48 years after he died of brain injuries in police custody, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Friday.
The move, supported by the Biko family, aims to determine whether any criminal conduct was involved in his death on Sept. 12, 1977. Biko, founder of the Black Consciousness Movement, allegedly suffered fatal injuries under torture by members of the apartheid-era Special Branch.
No one was prosecuted at the time. A 1977 inquest found Biko died from injuries sustained during a purported scuffle with officers and assigned no criminal responsibility.
South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission declined in 1999 to grant amnesty to the officers involved, two of whom are still alive, the NPA said.
“The NPA and its partners will continue their efforts to address the atrocities of the past and assist in providing closure to the Biko family and society at large,” the authority said in a statement.
Three decades after the end of white minority rule, South Africa continues to grapple with unresolved apartheid-era crimes. Earlier this year, President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed a judicial commission to examine whether attempts were made to obstruct investigations or prosecutions of such cases.
The reopened inquest was adjourned to Nov. 12 for case management at the High Court of South Africa, Eastern Cape Division, the NPA said.