South Africa establishes new apartheid prosecution policy News
South Africa establishes new apartheid prosecution policy

[JURIST] South Africa's National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) [official website] has established a policy to prosecute political crimes committed during apartheid in South Africa [UN backgrounder] by individuals who were denied amnesty by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) [official website]. The new policy indicates that the National Director of Public Prosecution [NPA backgrounder] will make decisions on whether to prosecute, and that the NPA's Priority Crimes Litigation Unit will manage the investigations and institute any resulting prosecutions. According to the policy, prosecutions could be prompted by victim complaints, continuing investigations into cases arising from TRC hearings, or referrals by the police or the National Intelligence Agency [official website]. Additionally, perpetrators bringing information to the NPA are able to become witnesses for the state. The deputy director of public prosecutions, Gerhard Nel, said it is impossible to predict how many prosecutions will result from the policy. SAPA has more.