While the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Act gives the President the right to appoint the Truth Commissioners, NGO's have not been content to allow the process to become a political exercise and have in fact lobbied for the process of nomination and selection of the Truth Commissioners to be consultative and transparent. This transparency and participation has been accepted by the Government as a necessary one if NGOs are to be supportive of the process.
The Act itself in its transition phase was closely monitored by NGOs and other human rights organisations. The redrafting of the Act over the last few months was mainly due to the active intervention of NGOs. What has clearly emerged in this debate is that the Truth Commission cannot be left alone to act on its own. NGOs have to constantly monitor the process and be the voice of the voiceless in ensuring that the commission acts in the interests of victims and survivors.
NGOs thus have a role in popularising the Truth Commission and making it accessible to the ordinary people of South Africa who have borne the brunt of atrocities committed in the past. The Truth Commission has a limited lifespan of two years from the time it begins. During this time, the Commissioners have not only to deal with victims, but with amnesty applications and human rights offenders. NGOs must support victim's support groups and assist them to come before the Commission. The ordinary person in the street does not know about the TRC Act and is even less likely to understand the complicated piece of legislation. It is the role of NGOs to demystify it for them in language they can understand.
There are many creative ways of doing this. One NGO lobbygroup has already commissioned the publication of a comic on the TRC in different languages. Another has formed a task group to inform Ministers and community leaders about the process. Other mechanisms of unfolding the legislation for ordinary people could be the making of adverts, videos, posters and plays. Acting troupes could travel around the country especially in rural areas and act out the roles of the different role players in the Truth Commission.
NGOs have another critical role to play and this is in what I therm the parallel process. The Truth Commission will be confined to the amnesty applications, the investigation and documenting of gross human rights violations and applications for reparation. The difficult question to deal with is the right of access for victims. Many human rights activists and lawyers argue that this area of the legislation is a grey one. In South Africa, if we want every story to be told then the legislation must be interpreted creatively to make opportunities for the victims. If we want to set our past free, then it is absolutely necessary for the pain of each victim and his or her family to be told and acknowledged.
The Commission will not be able to attend to all of this. NGOs particularly in the religious community are of the view that a parallel process is necessary so that all the victims and survivors of South Africa (not only those who have sustained acts of gross violations) can have their stories told, and their pain and courage can be acknowledged.
Apart from assisting the Commission in ensuring that it is able to complete all its tasks, NGOs also have a role to play in the strengthening of the human rights culture that we have fought so dearly for. A culture of morality and respect for rule of Law needs to be restored. It is the role of NGOs to monitor the commission and ensure that accepted human rights standards are adhered to and are not compromised. In this regard, they must ensure that proper hearings are held where victims can come and be heard. They must also ensure that the commission pays proper attention to assisting victims to come before it. It is not enough to legislate legal assistance. The Commission must provide funds for legal aid for victims. It is the task of NGOs to insist that this is done.
On the question of reparations, it is the task of the NGOs to be proactive and to investigate what kind of compensation victims' groups are asking for. This must be communicated to the commission to ensure that proper attention is given to this aspect so that the constitutional rights of victims are not prejudiced. NGOs should also be prepared, if necessary, to mount challenges against the commission if they feel that the standards are being compromised. NGOs will be challenged in a way like never before to ensure that reparations are not only economic by symbolic as well.
NGOs also have a responsibility to ensure that the Commission's recommendation to build a human rights culture in our public institutions are taken up. One must remember that the Commission can only make recommendations. It is the task then of Parliament to ensure that the recommendations are carried out. Government are notorious for filing these sorts of recommendations away. It is the task of NGOs to ensure that this does not happen in South Africa.
The process is not one where the commission is to be criticised only. We, civil society, must own the process and make it our own. We should not shirk from the responsibility of standing up for those whom we represent, particularly the disempowered. A human rights culture is built up over a number of years. We can begin this process by using the Truth and Reconciliation Act.