The move comes after survivors and relatives of victims of apartheid-era crimes began lawsuits against the Ramaphosa government.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa ordered an investigation to establish whether the previous government led by his party intentionally blocked the investigation and prosecution of crimes during the apartheid era.
Ramaphosa’s office said in a statement Wednesday that the landmark’s move would address allegations of “inappropriate influence in delays or obstruction” based on a Levelate investigation into the government after the African National Congress (ANC) party led.
“President Ramaphosa appreciates the anguish and frustration of the families of victims who have fought for justice for many years,” the Ramaphosa office said.
The president’s announcement of the Judiciary Committee comes after 25 survivors and relatives of victims of apartheid-era crime began lawsuits against his government in January, seeking damages.
They argued that, despite recommendations made by the post-apartheid Truth and Reconciliation Commission since the late 1990s, unresolved murders, loss of failure and other crimes could not be properly investigated in an age of forced racism.
The committee was established in 1996 by then President Nelson Mandela under the chairmanship of Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Chuchu.
Its mission was to expose and document crimes from the apartheid era and give some of the people in charge of the opportunity to confess their role, including members of the apartheid government’s national security forces involved in many murders.
The ANC is an organization at the forefront of the fight against white minority rules, leading South Africa to democracy in 1994 when apartheid ended.
One of the most notable unresolved cases is the case of Cradock Four, a group of black anti-apartheid activists who were accused and killed by security forces in 1985. Their bodies were burned and there were allegedly been tortured by security officers.
No one has been charged for the murder, and the circumstances of the death have never been fully revealed. These are one of thousands of crimes during apartheid, where the victims and their families have not yet seen justice.
Lukanyo Karata, whose father’s fort was one of Cradock 4, is part of a group that took the current South African government to court in January.
Karata said at the start of the trial that since President Tabo Mbeki’s administration from 1999 to 2008, the South African government had failed to act on the committee’s recommendations, denying the justice of the victims and their families.
He and other relatives say that government ministers intervened to prevent crime investigation and prosecution.
