The decision by President Thabo Mbeki to address the issue of presidential pardons during his most recent speech to Parliament this year has been seen in some ANC circles as an attempt to polish his image before the party’s elective conference that starts in just more than three weeks.
Mbeki addressed a joint sitting of Parliament this week to explain to MPs that the process to be used to deal with pardons will include a group of representatives from all political parties.
It will be called ‘the Reference Group†and will scrutinise each pardon application and make recommendations to the presi-dent, which he promises to ‘seriously take into account†when making his final decision.
The deadline for the submission of applications is April 15 2008. It is predicted the process will take months to complete. Political parties are reluctant to release lists of applications in which they are involved.
Among those who will not be considered for pardon are Janusz Walus and Clive Derby-Lewis — both of whom were involved in the murder of Communist Party leader Chris Hani — because the framework excludes those who were not granted amnesty by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The new approach is a departure from previous instances where Mbeki granted presidential pardons to offenders of alleged political crimes without any public consultation or advice from opposition parties.
Some view the change in approach as suspect, given that ANC presidential candidates are doing everything possible to ensure victory at the Polokwane conference.
‘Nothing happens now without a reason, everything is looking at the conference. The president wants to portray himself as someone who is caring and not as aloof as people always accuse him of being. This is part of the charm offensive,†a government official told the Mail & Guardian.
Parliamentarians agree the announcement has put Mbeki in a more favourable light. He also briefed the ANC caucus a day before he addressed Parliament, while Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka briefed opposition leaders on Tuesday.
‘He must seem as if he is not operating unilaterally. The more buy-in you have from people and give them a chance to have their say, the better,†said an ANC MP.
Another senior MP said that opening the pardon process will ensure that Mbeki is seen as a ‘good head of stateâ€.
The MP said ANC members on the ground knew about Mbeki’s intention to address the pardon issue. They knew ‘the president was going to forgive peopleâ€.
Freedom Front Plus leader Pieter Mulder said the decision shows Mbeki to be ‘friendly and softâ€.
Members of the now-defunct Conservative Party and the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging asked the Freedom Front to intervene on their behalf when their pardon applications were not dealt with by the president.
The decision to hasten the presidential pardoning process comes shortly before the Pretoria High Court hears an application by the IFP claiming Mbeki and Justice Minister Brigitte Mabandla infringed the human rights of those who applied for pardon by not handling the process speedily.
IFP MP Koos van der Merwe is sceptical about how quickly the process will unfold.
‘I don’t know if a group of MPs who are not lawyers should be saddled with this responsibility. It seems as if the process was not thought through properly.â€
Mbeki said those involved in sexual offences, domestic violence, abuse and drug-related cases will not be considered.
Presidential spokesperson Mukoni Ratshitanga denied the timing of the announcement had any significance.
‘The timing is neither here nor there; this is the outcome of a considered matter. We are not doing it now because the timing favours us or anything like that.â€