TRC Final Report

Volume 5

Chapter 4

Subsection 21

■ WHITE COMMUNITIES

181 Apartheid policies resulted in the division of South African communities along racial lines. At a post hearing workshop of the Commission, Mr Tjol Lategan said:

Politics beset every fibre of our community, in our schools, in our churches, in our agricultural unions, in our cultural organisations, every bit of the community got politicised and polarised.

182 Through apartheid, the white community retained political and economic power. The unequal distribution of resources meant that white communities benefited through well-serviced suburbs, accessible education, access to government and other employment opportunities and countless other advantages. Whilst only a minority of white people engaged in the direct perpetration of violence, many gross human rights violations were committed in order to retain these benefits.

183 The mobilisation of members of the white community to uphold the system began when they were still children. The state-owned media presented a distorted view of South Africa. Militarisation of young white males began at school through the system of cadets, which was a training ground for their subsequent conscription. This militarisation has had many negative consequences - not least with regard to the level of violence prevalent in contemporary society.

184 Many perpetrators worked in a context in which the end was seen to justify the means. Attacks on white targets by the liberation movements further strengthened this resolve. Many white communities felt a sense of fear and insecurity, which was legitimised through landmine attacks in the rural areas and other incidents such as the Church Street and Magoo’s Bar bombings.

185 Many who are now seen as perpetrators viewed themselves as defenders of their nation and were, at the time, showered with praises and rewards for achieving their goals. Their actions appeared justified in what they viewed as a war context.

186 Former leaders subsequently distanced themselves from those who were doing the work of the state. As Eugene de Kock said in mitigation of sentence, “One would now believe that I was the only individual who fought the ANC.” Once loyal subjects of the former government expressed the view that their leaders had abandoned them. This has exacerbated fear of the Commission. At a workshop in Ermelo, Dominee Gerhard Barnard described the sentiments in some white communities:

The people don’t see it as a reconciliation commission but as a punitive commission; somebody has to be punished and this is where our Afrikaners had to take their punishment ... I realised that the fear which arose is not the fear of confessing, but the fear of what is going to happen to the evidence? In what ways will people be punished in the future?

187 This reflects the fact that different communities have different perceptions of the Commission. Many victims, mainly from black communities, have criticised the Commission for being too soft and accommodating of perpetrators through the provision of amnesty. Perpetrators, on the other hand, appear to view the Commission with fear because of its perceived retributive powers.

188 The majority of individual white South Africans did not actively engage in the perpetration of gross human rights violations. At the same time, they did not overtly resist the dehumanising system within which these violations took place. Some white South Africans have recognised their bystander complicity. This has generated a sense of guilt, shame or denial. At a post-hearing workshop, Ms Lesley Morgan, a white South African housewife, described these feelings:

There is a sense of complicity, a terrible feeling of failure ... the choices I made in the past to avoid what I perceived in my fear and cowardice as having consequences too dangerous to deal with have resulted in consequences worse than I ever feared.

189 Fears of an imminent civil war resulted in many white South Africans leaving the country. Emigration, although a voluntary activity, had widespread consequences for families and communities. In some ways, these mirror the experience of exile in that they result in the scattering and dislocation of families. Emigration also had economic consequences for the country, as it was those with skills who were most likely to emigrate.

190 The absence of white South Africans at the Commission hearings has been disappointing. If true reconciliation is to take place, white communities will have to take responsibility and acknowledge their role as beneficiaries of apartheid. The consequences of this lack of participation are likely to perpetuate the polarisation of South African communities and further obstruct processes of reconciliation.

■ CONCLUSION

191 This chapter has tried to assess the effects of thirty-four years of oppression and resistance. It has addressed some of the psychological and physical consequences of gross violations of human rights as reported to the Commission. The Commission heard testimony from a broad range of people, many of whom testified about violations experienced by others. Mothers, sisters, fathers, brothers, relatives and friends came forward to speak of their pain and anguish. Their testimonies spoke of the ripple effects on families and communities of the system of apartheid and the oppressive manner in which it was implemented.

192 People came to the Commission to tell their stories in an attempt to facilitate, not only their own individual healing processes, but also a healing process for the entire nation. Many of those who chose not to come to the Commission heard versions of their own stories in the experiences of others. In this way, the Commission was able to reach a broader community.