TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION

MZWAKHE PHILEMON MNDEBELE APPLICANT

The applicant applies for amnesty in respect of the unlawful possession of a firearm on 28 November 1992. He was convicted of such possession and was sentenced to undergo five years of imprisonment, the whole of which was suspended on certain conditions.

On 28 November 1992 the applicant attended the funeral of a prominent member of the Ratanda - Heidelberg branch of the African National Congress who had been killed by a supporter of the Inkatha Freedom Party. The applicant was a member of the African National Congress Youth League, holding position of Secretary for Sports, Arts and Culture in the PWV Region.

The atmosphere at the funeral was extremely tense. There was a police presence and some of the mourners were armed. Shots were fired into the air. Members of the leadership of the ANC who were present tried to control the situation by talking to the mourners. The applicant asked them to hand over their firearms to him. Only one person complied.

The applicant received the firearm from him with the intention of handing it over to the Peace Desk of the ANC. He was seen by the police when in possession of the firearm and they chased him. He managed to successfully evade captive but in the process dropped the gun which was picked up by the police. He later heard that the police were looking for him and some days later he handed himself over to the police on the advice of senior members of the ANC. He was thereafter detained, charged, convicted and sentenced in respect of his possession of the firearm.

We are in the view that the applicant's possession of the firearm was an act associated with a political objective committed in the course of the conflicts of the past. He came into possession of the firearm in his capacity as a leader of the Youth League and with the intention of defusing a situation which was tense because of political reasons.

We are also satisfied that the applicant has made a full disclosure of all relevant facts to the incident and that this application satisfies the requirements of the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act, No 34 of 1995.

In the result, the applicant is GRANTED amnesty in respect of his being in unlawful possession of a firearm on 28 November 1992, for which he was convicted and sentenced to undergo five years imprisonment the whole of which was suspended on certain conditions.