Former South African minister Radebe says he knew nothing of deals to halt prosecutions — Daily Maverick

In Johannesburg, South Africa, former justice minister Jeff Radebe told the Kampepe Commission that he was unaware of any formal or informal arrangements aimed at ending criminal prosecutions for apartheid-era crimes. The commission is investigating delays in cases linked to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).

As Daily Maverick reports, during cross-examination on September 22 and 23, Radebe said that while serving in the leadership structures of the African National Congress and in government, he knew only of official state negotiations and the legally prescribed TRC process. He served as justice minister from 2009 to 2014.

Delays in TRC cases

Commission member Advocate Andrea Gabriel asked Radebe what specific steps he had taken together with the police minister to address the shortage of investigators in TRC cases. The former minister replied that he did not recall any specific executive intervention apart from discussions “in general terms.”

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Radebe referred to the constitutional separation of powers. According to him, the investigation of crimes falls within the jurisdiction of the South African Police Service, while the National Director of Public Prosecutions independently decides on bringing charges. He stressed that the justice minister could not lawfully instruct a prosecutor whom to prosecute.

The Pebco Three case

One of the central cases in the hearings concerns three activists from the Port Elizabeth Black Civic Organisations — Qaqawuli Godlozi, Champion Galela and Sipho Hashe. In 1985, they were abducted, killed and burned by former members of the apartheid-era security branch. The people implicated in these crimes applied for amnesty, but the TRC Amnesty Committee denied them.

Charges against several former security force members were brought in 2004, but court proceedings were halted due to case reviews. In 2009, the High Court ordered the Department of Justice to reconvene the Amnesty Committee, but this did not happen and the criminal charges were not reinstated. During Radebe’s term, six suspects were still alive; as of 2026, only Joe Mamasela is alive, and he says that his health prevents him from standing trial.