Justice South African Style
an article by Tony Dominski

BOOK REVIEW: No Future Without Forgiveness, 1999, by Desmond Tutu, 287 Pages, Doubleday, New York.

Give amnesty to murderers? Forgive torturers? As crazy as it sounds, this is exactly what happened from 1995-1998 in South Africa via its Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The Commission was established to enable the nation to make the transition from apartheid to a new democratic state with a universal recognition of human rights.

"No Future Without Forgiveness" published in 1999, is Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Desmond Tutu's personal memoir of chairing the commission. The Commission granted amnesty to human rights violators, including anti-apartheid activists, in exchange for the truth about their crimes. Amazingly, many hardened military and police officers asked for and received forgiveness for their crimes.

For victims, the Commission offered a chance to be heard plus modest but symbolically important reparations. Many of the 20,000 victims who submitted affidavits found comfort in being able to tell their stories to a sympathetic audience. Families of victims obtained some comfort and help in rebuilding their lives by learning about the fate of their loved ones.

Tutu often used to say that the oppressor was dehumanized as much or more as the oppressed. A memorable case in point is a wife's tale about how her husband, a rank and file South African policeman, lost his health and sanity due the secret acts of cruelty he committed on the job.

"No Future Without Forgiveness," is unique in its clear explanation of the theory and practice of restorative justice. The book's message is wonderfully summed up by a mother who forgave her daughter's murderer: "I had finally come to realize that real justice is not punishment but restoration, not necessarily of how things used to be, but how they really should be."

DISCUSSION

Question(s) related to this article:

Israel/Palestine, is the situation like South Africa?
Would a Truth and Reconciliation Commission help?

As a reader, you are invited to join in the discussion of this article based on any of the above question(s): just click on the question, read the previous comments and add a new reply. You may also enter a new discussion topic on this article - see bottom of this page.

Thematic forum(s) in which this article is being discussed:

MIDEAST PEACE

Latest reader comment:

Since the above was written, CPNN has received an important report from the Middle East about a new Palestinian/Israeli peace initiative which includes plans for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission modeled on the one in South Africa.  See the report Israeli Activists Elude Roadblocks to meet Palestinians for Peace .

This report was posted on June 3, 2003. The moderator is Helen.

If you wish to start a new discussion topic on this article, please copy the title of this article which is Justice South African Style and its number which is 56 and enter this information along with your discussion question and a brief text on the new topic form.

A few stories are retained on the main listings if they are considered by readers to be a priority. If you have not already done so, please take the time to check a box below: should this article be considered as a priority?