Apartheid's Unfinished Business: Families of Victims Still Seek Justice

On a fateful night in June 1985, four anti-apartheid activists, known as the Cradock Four, were brutally murdered by security police in South Africa. The victims, Fort Calata, Matthew Goniwe, Sicelo Mhlauli, and Sparrow Mkonto, were stopped by police while driving home from a meeting, handcuffed, and then killed in a gruesome manner.

Their deaths became a symbol of the violent and callous nature of apartheid. Despite the advent of democracy in 1994, the families of the Cradock Four have yet to find justice or answers about the murders. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), established in 1996, was designed to uncover human rights violations committed during apartheid, but it failed to deliver justice for the families.

The TRC's Limitations

The TRC, led by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, heard testimonies from over 21,000 victims, including those of the Cradock Four. However, the commission's scope was limited, and it did not properly expose the systemic nature of apartheid. Many perpetrators, including high-ranking officials, were not held accountable for their crimes.

Successive governments, led by the African National Congress (ANC), failed to pursue hundreds of cases referred to state prosecutors by the TRC. The families of the victims accuse former presidents Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma of striking a deal with apartheid generals to bury the cases in exchange for atrocities committed by ANC members during the struggle not being pursued in court.

The case of the Cradock Four is a prime example of the TRC's limitations. A 1987 inquest concluded that the men were killed by "unknown persons," while a second inquest in 1993 said "members of the security forces" were responsible but did not name any specific perpetrators. It was only at the TRC that the three white police officers admitted to the murders, in an attempt to evade prosecution.

A New Inquest and the Search for Justice

A third inquest into the Cradock Four killings was opened in June last year, after the families had put the government under sustained pressure for years. The inquest has heard testimonies from former prosecutors and police officers, who have revealed that their work on TRC cases was obstructed.

Lukhanyo Calata, the son of Fort Calata, has led the charge for justice, accusing the ANC government of selling out the families. "They were supposed to affirm all of who my father was, by holding his killers to account," he said. "So when they didn't, they failed to affirm that the life of a black person in South Africa is equal to that of a white person."

The inquiry into potential political interference with prosecutions is ongoing, with a final report due on July 31. The families of the Cradock Four and other victims of apartheid continue to fight for justice, seeking to hold those responsible for their loved ones' deaths accountable.