The remains of two Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) cadres, believed to have been killed and buried in Piet Retief, Mpumalanga, in 1983, were exhumed on Monday.
A small ceremony was held to mark the event.
Earlier in the day, the process was slowed down by the presence of mud in the graves.
”The remains were put in body bags and taken to the mortuary, where forensic examinations are expected to start soon,” said National Prosecutions Authority (NPA) spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi on Monday.
He said months of research, which included talking to the police and other former MK soldiers, have led the NPA to the conclusion that the exhumed graves belonged to Madoda Bonga and one other, as yet unidentified, cadre.
”What we want the forensic examination to basically tell us is whether indeed the remains are those of Madoda and his comrade and who this cadre was,” said Nkosi.
Bonga and his companion are believed to have been shot dead in January 1983 by the police and buried at Thandukukhanya cemetery.
The exhumation of their bodies, which started at 9am on Monday, was delayed by the mud found in their graves.
”More exhumations are expected to follow in the next several days. There are still about 473 more people missing. These are people who went missing between 1960 and 1994. Some of them are outside the borders,” said Nkosi. — Sapa