Former Eastern Cape Truth and Reconciliation (TRC) commissioner Reverend Bongani Finca has come out in support of the presidential pardon granted to 33 prisoners whose were refused amnesty by the TRC.
Finca, in his personal capacity, said on Tuesday that he did not share the concern that the president’s power to grant pardons would lead to a flood of prisoners being pardoned.
”The recommendation of the TRC is that the country must avoid the culture of impunity and entrench the rule of law.”
Finca said as a pastor he had ministered in prisons and was aware that there were murderers and rapists who must remain in prison until they were reformed.
”But there are also people of all colours and creed or political groupings who must put their case forward to the president and ask for a second chance in life.”
Finca said the TRC legislation did not nullify the president’s constitutional authority to grant pardons.
”Indeed, when I was approached by amnesty applicants who were refused amnesty by the Amnesty Committee for all sorts of technical reasons, my personal advice to them was that their only remaining option at that stage was to appeal to the president and state their case,” Finca said.
”I rejoice with them (those pardoned) and their families and hope they can be rehabilitated in their communities and contribute to the task of re-building our country.”
Finca said he was not perturbed that the group had been refused amnesty by the TRC.
”I was always part of the group within the TRC who was concerned about the inequality of legal representation given to amnesty applicants.”
Bongani said those who were former agents of the state were afforded excellent legal representation paid for by the state attorney.
”Those who were non-state agents and indigent applicants were represented by lawyers who were poorly paid using the legal aid rates that were notoriously low.”
He said the TRC acknowledged this inherent unfairness and its report concluded ”it remains disturbing to realise that there may be instances where justice was not done in respect of indigent amnesty applicants at amnesty hearings”.
A representative for Eastern Cape Premier Makhenkesi Stofile, Phila Ngqumba, said on Tuesday that the premier lobbied for the pardons because the people involved were political prisoners.
Five of those pardoned were already out on parole. The rest, many serving life sentences for murder and other crimes, were released from several prisons in the Eastern Cape at the weekend.
Their releases were welcomed by the African National Congress and the Pan Africanist Congress, while other political parties raised concerns about blanket amnesties or the exclusion of other prisoners.
Ngqumba said this was not the case.
”Stofile’s door is open to any prisoner or political party who wished to apply to have sentences of a political nature reviewed.
”As the premier of the province, he has the right to decide on the merit of each case presented to him and to then put the necessary wheels in motion.
”Their release should not be seen as the opening of a can of worms, but rather as the release of prisoners who were caught up in the struggle,” the representative said. – Sapa