TRC Final Report - Summary and Guide
to Contents
The report of the Truth and
Reconciliation Commission (the Commission)
consists of five volumes, each with a particular
focus. It is important to note that, once
the Amnesty Committee finishes its work,
an additional volume will report on the
work of that Committee, based on amnesty
hearings conducted and findings made. That
volume will also include summaries of the
statements of those people the Commission
found to have suffered gross violations
of human rights. While the current report
contains a full list of the names of those
in respect of whom such findings were made,
the codicil will include details of the
violations. The bulk of the findings of
the Commission may be found in the final
volume, as indicated below. However, specific
findings are made in individual chapters
throughout the report. The logical sequence
of the five volumes of the report is as
follows.
TRC
Final Report - Volume 1
Volume One is an introductory
volume, containing important discussion
of key concepts and debates within the Commission
itself and in society at large. It provides
the basis and rationale for the work of
the Commission, as described in the chapters
that appear in the following volumes. It
also describes the way the Commission worked
and the methods it used in order to fulfil
its mandate.
PDF 1,39 MB
TRC
Final Report - Volume 2
Volume Two addresses the
commission of gross violations of human
rights on all sides of the conflict. The
first and greater part of the volume deals
with the period between 1960 and 1990, while
a separate chapter is dedicated to the unique
political environment of the 1990s. The
role of the state in the perpetration of
gross violations of human rights is, for
practical reasons, divided between violations
committed outside South Africa and those
committed inside South Africa. The homelands
and their unique circumstances are described
in a separate chapter, as is the role of
the liberation movements.
PDF 1,65 MB
TRC
Final Report - Volume 3
Volume Three, which addresses
gross violations of human rights from the
perspective of the victim, is a companion
to Volume Two. For reasons of space, accounts
which are described in detail in one are
frequently simply referred to in the other.
The chapters in this volume are regionally
structured, reflecting the regional structure
of the Commission. This allowed for a targeted
focus on distinct geographical area and
a detailed examination of variations between
different parts of the country.
PDF 1,85 MB
TRC
Final Report - Volume 4
Volume Four seeks to address
the nature of the society in which gross
violations of human rights took place, reporting
on a series of 'institutional hearings'
which sought to explore the broader institutional
and social environment. In the process of
conducting these hearings, the Commission
sought to provide opportunities for self-examination
by the various sectors, as well as discussion
of their possible role in the future. In
addition to hearings on the various sectors,
the volume includes reports on three special
hearings: on compulsory military service,
children and youth and women.
PDF 0,83 MB
TRC
Final Report - Volume 5
Volume Five, the final volume
of the report, contains the conclusions
reached by the Commission, including analyses
and findings and recommendations. It also
includes the Minority Position of Commission
Wynand Malan and the Commission's response
to this.
PDF 1,09 MB