SA activists intensify fight for release of Zim violence report

By Alex Bell
19 June 2009

Human rights non governmental organisations in South Africa have taken further action to force the presidency to make public a report, by retired army generals, about state-sponsored violence in Zimbabwe last year.

The South African History Archive (SAHA), the SA Litigation Centre and the Southern African Centre for Survivors of Torture, have been trying to gain access to the report, that the presidency has since argued does not exist. The groups have now submitted an internal appeal to President Jacob Zuma’s office, in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act, disputing the claims around the so called non existence of the document.

The retired army generals were commissioned by then President Thabo Mbeki to investigate the role of Zimbabwe’s security forces in last year’s devastating post election violence. A report believed to be ‘shocking’ was then handed over to Mbeki, according to the NGOs now trying to make the report public.The NGOs said they are convinced that the six generals produced a ‘hard-hitting’ report that influenced the power-sharing deal Mbeki brokered between Zimbabwe’s political rivals last September. But Zuma’s office had insisted the generals never reported back to Mbeki in writing. Frank Chikane, the director general in the presidency under Mbeki, and Trevor Fowler, who currently holds the post, produced affidavits in which they said there was not only no report, but no supporting documentation on the generals’ mission.
SAHA said it was hard to believe that they were not asked to document their findings, as the mission cost the South African taxpayer nearly R650 000, according to the foreign ministry.
“To suggest that this amount of money could be spent and the admitted investigation conducted merely for a once-off oral briefing to be made to the President... beggars belief,” the organisation said on Friday.
The appeal was handed to the Minister in the Presidency, Collins Chabane, last week and Zuma’s office now has 30 days to respond. If the president rejects the request, going to court would be the NGOs last resort to obtain the report.