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Apartheid victims to receive reparations from govt

[South Africa] President Thabo Mbeki ANC
Thabo Mbeki, the man handed the baton of brokering peace in Cote d'Ivoire
    JOHANNESBURG

    South African President Thabo Mbeki has announced that victims of apartheid abuses would receive a once-off final reparations grant of R30,000 (about US $3,842), news reports said on Tuesday.

    The South African Press Association (SAPA) reported that Mbeki made the announcement during a special debate in parliament on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's (TRC) final report.

    Mbeki said the commission had reported that about 22,000 individuals or surviving family members appeared before it, and 19,000 of these required urgent reparations, SAPA reported.

    Victims included those who lost loved ones or were subjected to abuses such as torture.

    "With regard to final reparations, government will provide a once-off grant of R30,000 to those individuals or survivors designated by the TRC," Mbeki was quoted as saying.

    "We do so with some apprehension, for as the TRC itself has underlined, no one can attach monetary value to life and suffering," Mbeki added.

    For more on the TRC final report go to: www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32988

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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