Injustice and the disregard of the provisions of our Constitution have become such a common phenomenon in South Africa that it is taken for granted in most circles. The appointment of Lt. Gen. Mbatha as chief of the South African Army is without doubt a result of a rotten legal system where the right is unilaterally and unlawfully applied by the National Prosecuting Authority. Lt. Genl. Mbatha instructed Walter Smiles on May 25, 1993, to throw a hand grenade in the Trust Bank Building in Kimberley. He transported Smiles to the scene and was present when the hand grenade was thrown. 1 Person died and 40 were injured, including defenceless women and children.
Lt. Genl. Mbatha applied for amnesty, but the amnesty committee found that the incident was not committed in the conflict of the past and associated with a political objective. Amnesty was therefore denied.
There is therefore a charge of murder and attempted murder against Lt. Gen. Mbatha pending and his appointment as head of the South African Army shocking.
The crude way in which the National Prosecuting Authority disregards the provisions of Article 9 of the Constitution and law and justice in general, is further emphasized when it is taken into account that the acts for which former members of the security branch are currently being prosecuted, are without exception associated with a political objective and committed in the conflict of the past and therefore fall within the ambit of the concluding paragraph of the Interim Constitution. By contrast, the murder and attempted murder committed by Lt. Gen. Mbatha, according to the emphatic finding of the amnesty committee, was not committed with a political objective in the conflict of the past. It therefore does not fall within the provisions of the concluding paragraph of the Interim Constitution and is, for all legal purposes, ordinary murder and attempted murder.
The decision of the amnesty committee and final report of the TRC relating to this incident can be viewed here.
See also>> TRC Final Report [Volume 6, Section 3, Chapter 2, Subsection 15]
Yours faithfully,
JB Botha
Chairperson
Lt. Genl. Mbatha applied for amnesty, but the amnesty committee found that the incident was not committed in the conflict of the past and associated with a political objective. Amnesty was therefore denied.
There is therefore a charge of murder and attempted murder against Lt. Gen. Mbatha pending and his appointment as head of the South African Army shocking.
The crude way in which the National Prosecuting Authority disregards the provisions of Article 9 of the Constitution and law and justice in general, is further emphasized when it is taken into account that the acts for which former members of the security branch are currently being prosecuted, are without exception associated with a political objective and committed in the conflict of the past and therefore fall within the ambit of the concluding paragraph of the Interim Constitution. By contrast, the murder and attempted murder committed by Lt. Gen. Mbatha, according to the emphatic finding of the amnesty committee, was not committed with a political objective in the conflict of the past. It therefore does not fall within the provisions of the concluding paragraph of the Interim Constitution and is, for all legal purposes, ordinary murder and attempted murder.
The decision of the amnesty committee and final report of the TRC relating to this incident can be viewed here.
See also>> TRC Final Report [Volume 6, Section 3, Chapter 2, Subsection 15]
Yours faithfully,
JB Botha
Chairperson
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