Remembering the truth : an oral history perspective on the victim hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa, 1996-1998

[摘要] English: Every individual, family and place has a history of its own which maycontribute knowledge and understanding to the study of history. Writtensources are not always readily available on all themes or periods and/orare at times inadequate. Oral history can provide a type of historicalsource to gain information, fill gaps and add to a more balanced view ofevents and occurrences. By using oral history methods the researchermay obtain, from the lips of the living survivors/victims, a fuller record oftheir participation in events of historical significance by tending to thecomplex legacy of memory.The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa (TRC) shone aprofoundly illuminating spotlight on South Africa's past. TheCommission's mandate, as contained in the Promotion of National Unityand Reconciliation Act No. 34 of 1995, had to provide the space withinwhich victims could share the story of their trauma with the nation. TheHuman Rights Violations Committee (HRV Committee) filled thisvacuum, providing a more complete picture of the past as it emanatedfrom the larger narratives of victims.These victim hearings in particular, meant that thousands whoexperienced human rights violations could convey their story. The publicnature of these hearings broke the silence, lifted the veil of secrecy andgave authority to the voices of ordinary people. Through the process ofpersonal recollection, the Commission could provide more answers formore people to gain ultimately a more all-inclusive picture of whatconstituted the past.The study highlights the importance of oral history by using the victimhearings of the South African TRC as a case study where ordinary peoplewere given an opportunity to tell their stories. Thus, this research bringsanother perspective and dimension to the reliability of oral testimoniesmade before the TRC. To assess the workable successes of oral evidence,the challenges facing oral history are explored by examining theproblematic nature, limitations and usefulness of memory as a potentialsource of oral evidence. Furthermore, the limitations of memory aretaken into account to test the reliability of oral accounts when striving forthe creation of a more representative all-inclusive history. Within thiscontext, the significance of the establishment of a Commission on Truthand Reconciliation for South Africa as the formal genesis of anotherprocess of confronting the past through official truth-seeking, isemphasised. Against this background, the victim hearings of the TRCwhere ordinary people could express their views and illuminate afragment of the past transmitted by word of mouth, are evaluated.Only if one understands oral history, with its focus on memory andnarrative, can one begin to try to fathom the oral narratives made beforethe TRC's Committee on Human Rights Violations as a broader process ofevents and an account of human experience that took place in the SouthAfrican history.Using the TRC as a model for confronting a tormented and dividedhistory, the study provides deeper insights into and a greater analyticalunderstanding of past human rights violations through oral narrativesand the process of coming to terms with it.

[发布机构] University of the Free State