/ 9 September 1994

Still No Defence Briefing On Steyn Report

Louise Flanagan

THE Ministry of Defence has still not been briefed on the controversial Steyn report, deputy minister of defence Ronnie Kasrils admitted to parliament this week.

I have been contextually briefed by General (Pierre) Steyn … I have, however, not been briefed on the contents of any report. This will be done shortly, Kasrils said in response to a Democratic Party question.

Kasrils reply indicates that there was both a written and a verbal Steyn report. Only the verbal report appears to have dealt with Military Intelligence dirty tricks.

General Steyn completed his investigation in 1993 and various written recommendations were made regarding changes in the organisation and control of resources. All the recommendations were implemented by the Defence Force, Kasrils said.

Last week, deputy president FW de Klerk told parliament 23 senior SADF members had lost their jobs as a result of Steyns verbal report. De Klerk did not mention the existence of a written report, though Steyn himself said there was one.

Kasrils also admitted that one of the 23 officers had asked for his job back. (He) was duly reinstated after the attorney general of the Transvaal found insufficient evidence to prosecute, he said.

He also confirmed that Commander Jack Widdowson sued the military over his early retirement and that the case was settled out of court.

However, it is believed that more than one officer was reinstated until shortly before the April elections. The Mail & Guardian was told of at least five officers who were rehired after the Steyn investigation.

At least one other officer who lost his job as a result of the Steyn inquiry — Colonel Anton Nieuwoudt — also reached an out-of-court settlement with the SADF. Kasrils did not mention this.