Johannesburg - The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) yesterday applied to the High Court to abrogate amnesties granted to 37 high-ranking members of the African National Congress, including the Deputy President, Mr Thabo Mbeki, writes Patrick Laurence.
The application is a sequel to sustained criticism by opposition parties of the decision by the amnesty committee - which as an autonomous body is independent of the TRC - to grant "blanket amnesty" to the 37 ANC members, in apparent contravention of the Promotion of National Unity and National Reconciliation Act.
The law lays down that for amnesty to be accorded the applicant must specify the offence for which he or she is seeking legal absolution. The 37 ANC applicants did not do so.
The TRC sought legal advice from a senior lawyer. It was told by him that the amnesty committee decision appeared to contravene the law. Another factor appears to have propelled the TRC to action yesterday: an application by the opposition National Party to the High Court challenging the decision.
But the TRC chairman, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, denied that the TRC application was prompted by the National Party's application. He explained that the TRC application had been delayed because the commission was seeking to persuade the ANC not to oppose its court application.