Military Veterans Bill B1-2011 Submission by Khulumani Support Group

Military Veterans Bill B1-2011

Submission by Khulumani Support Group

Background Information

Mission of Khulumani Support Group

To contribute to building a just and inclusive society in which the dignity of those who were harmed by apartheid is restored through facilitating the transformation of victims into survivors and active citizens

Khulumani Present Status

A current membership of 65,000 individuals whose credentials fit the criteria of Article 3 of the bill under discussion – persons who made sacrifices “in the service of or for their country or who played a role in the democratization of South Africa.”

Profile of Membership

Khulumani’s programme activities have included all persons who have suffered as a result of participating in the liberation struggle in South Africa towards the goal of transforming the country, irrespective of their gender, age, political affiliation or any other criteria.

Collaboration A number of organisations in South Africa have

worked on measures for the social & economic inclusion of those most affected by the roles they played in the liberation struggle in South Africa, since the country’s 1994 transition.

These organisations currently work as a consortium called the South African Coalition for Transitional Justice.

Together they have built significant knowledge about and approaches to post-conflict community healing and social inclusion.

Members with Expertise related to the Issues of Focus in the Bill The 8 organisations that participate in the still-

to- be resolved issues highlighted by this Bill are:

Khulumani Support Group, The Institute for Justice & Reconciliation, The International Centre for Transitional Justice, The Centre for the Study of Violence &

Reconciliation, The South African History Archive; The Human Rights Media Centre; The Freedom of Expression Institute & The Legal Resources Centre

Motivation for An Inclusive Process The liberation struggle in South Africa

involved a mass movement of individuals who opposed political oppression and who made moral stands against the apartheid regime in different capacities.

These different roles – as actors who took up arms or as actors in a mass struggle, have been acknowledged as valid and legitimate contributions that warrant national acknowledgement and recognition, in particular at Freedom Park Legacy Trust.

Richer Descriptions of Significant Roles Played While some joined the armed

struggle and sacrificed education and opportunities to earn a living to provide for family and other dependants, others supported persons involved in armed struggle indirectly by serving as information carriers or by providing safe houses and other support that resulted in their being targeted.

Acknowledging Contributions Many more contributed to making stands

against violent political oppression that has left them with devastating and still unresolved & unaddressed consequences – from the lifelong impacts of prolonged detention associated with torture, of the loss of breadwinners and children through political assassinations, of the loss of education and blacklisting from employment, of the loss of homes targeted for arson, amongst other contributions.

The Need for Inclusive Recognition & Concrete Measures Given the lifelong consequences of the

political violence that targeted individuals who played different roles in the struggle for liberation;

Given the acknowledgement by the Department of Justice & Constitutional Development (November 4, 2010, Ambassador Mochubela Seekoe) that this was an indivisible struggle involving multiple role players whose lives have not yet been restored to forms of competence and capacities for self-reliance,

Proposed Defining Criteria Khulumani advocates for the needs for all

those who played meaningful roles that resulted in grave harms to life, limb, property and life chances, to be addressed through provisions that are inclusive, open, transparent and based only on urgent needs that have derived from the stands for justice made by survivors of the human rights struggle in South Africa.

An Inclusive Definition of Anti-Apartheid Activists Khulumani proposes that the focus of all

proposed remedies be the urgent needs of survivors of the human rights struggle in South Africa, rather than a focus on the political affiliations of those to be provided with benefits.

Khulumani suggests that the creation of distinctions between ‘military veterans’ and ‘victims’ is unhelpful in the national agenda of nation-building and the promotion of social inclusion.

Rebuilding Communities Post-Apartheid Khulumani contends that a primary goal of

the apartheid regime was the destruction of social ties amongst members of communities.

Communities comprised a diversity of human rights activists.

A policy that focuses on creating distinctions amongst those most harmed during apartheid, perpetuates the divisions amongst residents of the same community.

Khulumani’s Emphasis on Inclusive Community Peace-Building As an organisation, Khulumani has been proud

to have provided internships, narrative workshops, psychosocial workshops and employment opportunities to the full range of persons who were active agents in the human rights struggle in South Africa, including military veterans.

This approach has been found to contribute to building more appropriate, community-centred identities for a post-apartheid society, as opposed to a focus on retaining & rewarding ‘militarised identities’.

Khulumani Focus on Inclusive Victim Re-Empowerment Khulumani asserts that apartheid was a

process of deliberate & progressive disempowerment of large numbers of people.

Khulumani’s National Victim Re-Empowerment Programme provides capacity-building that re-activates the potential of the community leaders of the struggle to meaningfully contribute to improving the quality of life of members of the communities in which they reside, in partnership with local government & other actors.

Examples of Roles Currently Being Played by ‘Veterans’ Former combatants have significant

contributions to make to the rebuilding of their communities of origin as empowered & assertive human beings who serve as:

Community safety officers Community social historians Community youth educators Community human rights researchers &

monitors, amongst other roles

These programmes of skills-building require moresustainable funding support.

Khulumani’s Particular ConcernsA. That the adjudication of sacrifice should not be

restricted to the membership of any particular political organization; but should rather focus on the facts and evidence of real suffering of victims as the result of being involved in ‘the struggle’.

B. That omissions and inconsistency in the provision of remedies and benefits for ‘veterans of the struggle’ should be avoided, given that all those harmed in whatever way, have a right to rehabilitation, as provided for by South Africa’s ratification of the UN Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Khulumani’s Particular ConcernsC. That the situation that currently pertains to deep

contestation about who has been recognised for the Special Pension should be avoided at all costs. Registration & recognition should be simple & transparent.

D. That independent criteria are used to validate the applications of veterans and victims for benefits to avoid possible corruption or political manipulation.

E. That any semblance of arbitrariness in decision-making be avoided through creating a system that distributes the same benefits to all using objective criteria.

Pending Legal Challenges to Special Pension ProvisionsKhulumani is aware that the decision-making

processes related to Special Pensions has been apparently

deeplyflawed.

Khulumani makes this assertion from its experience of

assisting thousands of former combatants (militaryveterans in this Bill) to complete & submit

applicationsFor consideration on the basis of evidence of yearsserved mainly in military combat.

Special Pensions LitigationPresently, litigation is being prepared to

contestapparently flawed decisions where ‘political detainees’ (for example) have been excludedfrom the benefit.

There are currently thousands of rejectedapplications where applicants have not beenprovided with any reasons for their rejection.

International Findings to Address the Situation of Political Activists Cristian Correa: (Our findings in Latin America have borne

evidence of) … the value of creating equivalence between victims and veterans, rather then between veterans of the struggle of the past and those currently serving the military.

Veterans of political struggles tend to have more in common with victims and survivors than with the military.

(It is a problem that) … military benefits tend to be based on hierarchies of rank, rather than on actual need.

Cristian Correa Military benefits are usually distributed

by institutions that do not share the culture of veterans of political struggles

Better and more appropriate services have been found to be more effectively provided by organizations tailored for victims, survivors and veterans of historic struggles for justice who share more in common.

Dangers inherent in discriminatory benefit awards For many years, victims of the

apartheid human rights struggle, have been the targets of insults and denigration – “you did not participate in the struggle for monetary reward”

The current proposals threaten to divorce military veterans from the memory of the reasons they participated in the struggle.

The Need for Equal Recognition

Victims and veterans require acknowledgement and appreciation, not insults and denigration.

They also require that benefits & services are provided to both, without distinction.

An Inclusive & Integrated ApproachLet us create policies that: Serve both veterans & victims in life & that

remember them in death; Provide appropriate compensation for

“disablement” as a right and not as a welfare benefit;

Provide access to quality health care for both physical and mental needs and for rehabilitation;

Avoids all disparities and inequalities in the provision of a system of grants for a designated period to establish a baseline from which both victims and veterans are enabled to begin to rebuild their lives and their livelihoods.

Endorsement of Proposed Interventions Khulumani supports the described range

of interventions described in the Bill. Khulumani encourages the application of

the proposed monthly grant provision over 5 years to form the basis of a programme of rebuilding victim & veteran lives – these proposals were submitted to the DoJ&CD on December 13, 2010.

Estimated Numbers of Beneficiaries

Khulumani’s Apartheid Reparations Database currently contains records for 65,000 survivors of the political struggle in South Africa

The Department of Defence has been reported as having a database of military veterans comprising 57,500 former military combatants.

Estimates of Budgetary Requirements The provision of a monthly grant of

R2000.00 per qualifying individual over 5 years, would cost the National Treasury R2 billion per year x 5 years

Additional special measures & in particular health care measures & educational support would need to be budgeted for through these line departments, taking account of the capacity of veterans & victims to “do things for themselves”

The Essence of Human Dignity

"Participation and active involvement in the determination of one's own destiny is the essence of human dignity”

Former Head of the UN High Commission for Human Rights, Ms Mary Robinson

The Resilience of Veterans & Victims

Veterans & Victims prefer to: Choose the identity of a resourceful

survivor rather than a passive victim Develop their confidence in directing

their own lives, individually and collectively, to solve public problems together, to shape their environment & to contribute to the well-being of others & society.

Conclusion 1 Khulumani appeals for the development &

adoption of policies and regulations to provide for the recognition of the contributions of all those who were harmed in the struggle for freedom and justice in South Africa, whether as members of organized military formations or as civic actors who suffered political detention, torture and other gross human rights abuses as a result of the stands that they made for truth and justice.

Conclusion 2

Khulumani notes that there are individuals who fall into the category of being both a victim and a veteran and that the measures should focus on assisting all who were harmed, to overcome their consequences of their victimization, regardless of the capacity in which they were harmed.

An Undivided Struggle Let us take account that the struggle was

a united struggle against an illegitimate regime, that was characterized by different strategies & approaches.

Let us avoid recovering only parts of our history & forgetting others.

Let us created a united approach to dealing with the harms sustained by those who led the struggle in whatever capacity – equal recognition for service & sacrifice