| Khulumani Support Group |
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 The Khulumani Support Group is an assembly of survivors and families of victims of the political conflict of South Africa's Apartheid past. The group first came under the international spotlight when they filed a lawsuit in November 2002 in a District Court of New York against corporations and banks, alleging that they had aided and encouraged the Apartheid South African government in enabling acts of gross human rights violations. The corporations named in the suits included oil companies such as BP and Exxon Mobil, banks such as Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and UBS, as well as other multi-nationals such as IBM, General Motors and Ford. The group represents both the victims of Apartheid who told their stories to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), and the even larger group of survivors of gross human rights violations under Apartheid who did not manage to engage with the TRC process. Khulumani is seeking compensation for its members who have suffered acts of gross human rights violation. Khulumani demonstrates that the corporations sited in their lawsuit provided arms, ammunition and transport to the armed forces as well as fuel and military technology to that government’s armed forces. Furthermore, the banks that provided the funds to make these purchases are liable for enabling the apartheid government to commit acts of gross human rights violations. History Khulumani Support Group was formed in 1995 in response to the array of societal needs not being met. It acts as a voice on behalf of victims and survivors of the Apartheid regime and was set up in response to the pending Truth and Reconciliation Commission by victims who felt the Commission should be used to speak out about the past to ensure that such violations never occur again. With 54 000 members, Khulumani has provincial and regional structures in all nine provinces of South Africa. Their motto is “Speak out, we will never give up”. Programmes and activities Programmes
Advocacy and Lobbying Post-TRC: Khulumani hosts a weekly Post-TRC Advocacy Working Group comprising its various stakeholders and partners at its offices. Khulumani has planned to reconvene a series of hearings in areas of the country where many human rights violations took place without these places being reached by the TRC. The opportunity to publicly tell one's story and to have it acknowledged begins a journey of healing for deeply traumatised individuals. Reconciliation project: Khulumani has facilitated many processes, like in the East Rand, Johannesburg, and in the Natal Midlands where sentenced prisoners were introduced back into the communities where they had caused harm, including killings. The communities most affected are from Richmond (KZN), Kroonstad (Free State), and the East Rand (Gauteng), where intolerance created enormous hostilities among community members. Arts and Culture: Khulumani is implementing reconciliation activities through its Healing through the Creative Arts Project. Members feel incredible relief being listened to, often for the first time. This has been an incredibly powerful tool for healing and reconciliation. Four theatre plays have been produced:
Staff The organisation has four permanent staff members, five other temporary staff members and also has several provincial offices/branches around the country. The organisation has 42 000 affiliate members countrywide. Funders Their main funders are the National Lottery, Human Rights Foundation, Legal Aid Board, Department of Justice and Ministry through TRC (Truth and Reconciliation Commission) unit task team, Presidents Fund and Lamusa. Challenges One major challenge faced by the group, and that still lingers to this day, is that in its early days people were afraid of telling their stories. But eventually people started speaking out with the support of people like Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Hlengiwe Mkhize. Another challenge is the inability to stay in contact with members in “no go areas”. Some members living in deep rural areas are inaccessible due to lack of resources like telephone lines, transport etc. However, staff believes that with the support of their funders they can rise above the challenge. Khulumani's reparations along with the other Apartheid cases were thrown out on 29 September 2004. The Khulumani case had survived several attempts to have it destroyed. One such attempt was the request by a number of multi-national corporations supported by several governments, including the American and British, to the United States Supreme Court not to allow foreigners to file lawsuits in America for human rights violations committed elsewhere in the world. Contact details: Mr Zweli Mkhize Co-ordinator Tel: 011 403 4098 E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Physical address: 6th Floor, 87 Heerengracht Building, De Korte Street, Braamfontein. Bookmark this article:          |
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