Performing the Rainbow Nation: The Limitations of South Africa&#39;s Truth and Reconciliation Commission

The Rule Of Law ◽

Apartheid Regime ◽

Developmental Policies ◽

State Infrastructure

After the dismantling of the apartheid regime in 1994, South Africa was charged with acknowledging the sufferings of its populace while democratizing and de-racializing state infrastructure. Instead of pursuing the politically expedient path of collective amnesia, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission was formed in 1995. It has since been heralded as the most ambitious and organized socio-political endeavour to confront a troubled and divisive history. The Commission attempted to initiate South African into a new future predicated upon the principles of social justice, the rule of law and reconciliation; however, this paper will argue that in practice, these ideals were not sufficient to combat extant political pressure and were not politically supported by any concrete mechanism capable of catalyzing social transformation. Through an analysis of the Commission’s provision of amnesty, dismissal of institutional responsibility for apartheid and crime and the reluctance to pursue reparative and developmental policies, this paper will suggest South Africa’s attempts to bridge its racial divides were chiefly symbolic and restricted. Finally, it will consider whether the TRC’s performance of “truth” occurred at the price of reconciliation and the ramifications for restorative justice as a tool of social healing.

Disappointed Remains: Trauma, Testimony, and Reconciliation in Post-apartheid South Africa

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780195339550.013.0010 ◽

2012 ◽

Author(s):

Sean Field

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Real Life ◽

Trauma Survivors ◽

National Unity ◽

Apartheid Regime ◽

Democratic Elections

The apartheid regime in South Africa and the fight against the same, followed by the reconciliation is the crux of this article. The first democratic elections held on April 27, 1994, were surprisingly free of violence. Then, in one of its first pieces of legislation, the new democratic parliament passed the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act of 1995, which created the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. At the outset, the South African TRC promised to “uncover the truth” about past atrocities, and forge reconciliation across a divided country. As oral historians, we should consider the oral testimonies that were given at the Human Rights Victim hearings and reflect on the reconciliation process and what it means to ask trauma survivors to forgive and reconcile with perpetrators. This article cites several real life examples to explain the trauma and testimony of apartheid and post-apartheid Africa with a hint on the still prevailing disappointments and blurred memories.

Real Respect for the Rule of Law

Canadian Journal of Law & Jurisprudence ◽

10.1017/s0841820900002265 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 333-346

Author(s):

Michael Milde

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Rule Of Law ◽

Legal System ◽

Civil Liberties ◽

State Violence ◽

Political Event ◽

The Rule Of Law ◽

Truth And Reconciliation

Judging the Judges, Judging Ourselves is an excellent book for at least three reasons. First, it is a critically engaged, firsthand account of a unique legal and political event: the inquiry by South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission into the operation of that country’s legal system under Apartheid. Second, it develops an extended argument for a challengingly normative conception of the rule of law, complete with compelling practical illustrations of what can happen if officials charged with maintaining the integrity of a legal system adopt a less substantive standard. And third, the book is well written and a pleasure to read.South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) represents an unusual attempt to confront, acknowledge and overcome the devastating injustice, violence and hatred generated during the Apartheid era. What makes it unusual is the conscious decision to set aside demands for retributive justice. Instead, by exposing abuses and violations of human rights, and then compensating victims and pardoning confessed perpetrators, the TRC aimed to establish a framework in which former antagonists could set aside adversarial postures and work together to create a new, integrated and just South Africa. Whether this laudable experiment will succeed remains to be seen.What was clear early on was that the TRC could not hope to complete its task if it did not investigate the performance of the legal system and the legal profession under the Apartheid regime. Apartheid was a social and political construct that systematically denied basic human rights to the vast majority of South Africa’s population on the basis of race. A substantial amount of state violence was required to secure this result. But it is a singular, remarkable fact that the racial divide was maintained by a legal system which in many respects resembled its counterparts in liberal democratic societies where the courts actively and successfully protect civil liberties. What is particularly striking is that gross human rights violations were permitted, even approved, by legal institutions that appeared to respect such fundamental legitimacy-conferring principles as the rule of law and judicial independence. Equally troubling is the observation that the system was staffed by functionaries many of whom had unimpeachable credentials as advocates of human rights. So how could this justice system have produced such iniquitous results?

Truth and Reconciliation in South Africa: Jewish Voices and Perspectives

Verbum et Ecclesia ◽

10.4102/ve.v25i2.288 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 25 (2) ◽

pp. 546-567

Author(s):

P G J Meiring

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Jewish Community ◽

Social Action ◽

Jewish Experience ◽

Apartheid Regime

The author who served on the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) focuses on the Jewish experience in South Africa during the apartheid years. At a special TRC Hearing for Faith Communities (East London, 17-19 November 1997) Chief Rabbi Cyril Harris submitted a statement on behalf of his community. Two earlier documents were also put at the TRC’s disposal: a statement on Reconciliation presented by Gesher (a Jewish movement for social action) as a well as a comprehensive volume containing 27 interviews with Jewish activists (Cutting Through the Mountain). Taking his cue from both the Chief Rabbi’s presentation and the earlier documents, the author discusses the role of the Jewish community in overtly and covertly supporting the apartheid regime, as well the experiences of many Jews in struggling against apartheid. Finally the contribution of the Jewish community towards healing and reconciliation in South Africa comes under the spotlight.

Truth and reconciliation in South Africa: Hindu experiences and concerns

HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies ◽

10.4102/hts.v60i4.633 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 60 (4) ◽

Author(s):

P.G.J. Meiring

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Faith Communities ◽

The South ◽

Hindu Community ◽

The Way

The author who served on the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), focuses on the Hindu experience in South Africa during the apartheid years. At a special TRC Hearing for Faith Communities (East London, 17-19 November 1997) two submissions by local Hindu leaders were tabled. Taking his cues from those submissions, the author discusses four issues: the way the Hindu community suffered during these years, the way in which some members of the Hindu community supported the system of apartheid, the role of Hindus in the struggle against apartheid, and finally the contribution of the Hindu community towards reconciliation in South Africa. In conclusion some notes on how Hindus and Christians may work together in th

Dealing with a traumatic past: the victim hearings of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission and their reconciliation discourse

Critical Discourse Studies ◽

10.1080/17405900903181135 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 297-309 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Annelies Verdoolaege

Keyword(s):

South African ◽

The South ◽

Truth And Reconciliation

Handelingen - Koninklijke Zuid-Nederlandse Maatschappij voor Taal- en Letterkunde en Geschiedenis ◽

'Papieren' voor de toekomst

10.21825/kzm.v60i0.17399 ◽

1970 ◽

Vol 60 ◽

pp. 43-52

Author(s):

Gustaaf Janssens

Keyword(s):

South African ◽

The South ◽

Cultural Perception ◽

Close Relationship ◽

Archival Documents ◽

The Government

A purely cultural perception of records and archives is one-sided andincomplete. Records and archival documents are necessary to confirm therights and the obligations of both the government and the citizens. "Therecords are crucial to hold us accountable", says archbishop D. Tutu, formerpresident of the South African 'Truth and Reconciliation Commission'. Forthis reason, the government should organize the archives in such a way thatarchival services can fulfil their task as guardians of society's memorie.Citizens' rights and archives have a close relationship.

The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission

States of Imagination ◽

10.1215/9780822381273-006 ◽

2001 ◽

pp. 149-181 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Keyword(s):

South African ◽

The South ◽

Truth And Reconciliation

The knowledge and perceptions of history students of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC)

The Journal for Transdisciplinary Research in Southern Africa ◽

10.4102/td.v10i1.23 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

Author(s):

M Oelofse ◽

A Oosthuysen

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Research Method ◽

Mixed Method Research ◽

Group Interviews ◽

The University

Using the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa (TRC) and the concept of reconciliation as a case study, the article attempts to assess the knowledge and understanding of the registered undergraduate history students at the University of the Free State’s main campus about the TRC and the concept and process of reconciliation in the country at large. The research will firstly assess whether the younger generation of students, specifically students taking history as a subject, have any knowledge of such a significant and contemporary event in South African historiography as the TRC process. Secondly, in relation to the aims and recommendations of the TRC and against the background of reconciliation efforts in the country, to perceive the views and thoughts of undergraduate history students on the progress in reconciliation endeavours in South Africa. As a result, a sample of 128 undergraduate history students was randomly selected to complete a quantitative questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of both closed and open-ended questions. Group interviews, as a qualitative research method, were added and used to conduct interviews with 16 undergraduate history students selected randomly and answers were recorded. Accordingly, an explanatory mixed- method research method approach was employed by implementing both the qualitative and quantitative method.

Crimes and Accountability in Shakespeare

The American Journal of International Law ◽

10.2307/2998059 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 92 (1) ◽

pp. 1-40 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Theodor Meron

Keyword(s):

South African ◽

Former Yugoslavia ◽

Final Solution ◽

The South ◽

High Ranking ◽

The Holocaust

Accountability for crimes, a theme central to Shakespeare’s plays, is also extraordinarily pertinent to our times. Newspapers have reported on the care taken by the leaders of the former Yugoslavia to order atrocities against “enemy” populations only in the most indirect and euphemistic way. Even the Nazi leaders constantly resorted to euphemisms in referring to the Holocaust. No explicit written order from Hitler to carry out the final solution has ever been found. At the height of their power, the Nazis treated the data on the killing of Jews as top secret. Similarly, a high-ranking member of the former security police told the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission that written instructions to kill antiapartheid activists were never given; squad members who carried out the killings simply got “a nod of the head or a wink-wink kind of attitude.”