Apartheid victims’ organisation Khulumani Support Group will square off against the South African government next month in a New York court when Khulumani accuses various multinational corporations of having aided and abetted apartheid.
The South African government’s decision to appear as a “friend of the court” on behalf of the corporations goes a step beyond the so-called “Maduna affidavit”, in which former justice minister Penuell Maduna argued that actions by organisations such as -Khulumani undermined state sovereignty and therefore did not have the support of the South African government.
The Khulumani case, which will be heard on November 31, pits the NGO against car manufacturers, oil companies and banks, whom it accuses of profiting from apartheid and making finance available for the apartheid government to sustain its policies.
It follows a June 29 decision by the United States Supreme Court, which held that foreigners could use the Alien Tort Claims Act to institute lawsuits in the US for human rights abuses wherever they may have been committed.
Kaizer Kganyago, the Justice Department spokesperson, said the government would restate Maduna’s position as outlined in his affidavit to the New York court.
Meanwhile, Khulumani, which represents about 44 000 apartheid victims, on Thursday expressed disappointment at the National Prosecuting Authority’s decision not to prosecute chemical warfare expert Dr Wouter Basson.
The authority had won a limited right to prosecute Basson but felt that such prosecution would most likely fail the double jeopardy muster, which essentially means that a person may not be charged with the same offence if a court has heard the matter.