Expert on criminal charges against de Klerk, Vlok
A legal expert says the amount of time that has lapsed could be the biggest obstacle facing those who've laid charges against former president FW de Klerk.
The Anti-Racism Action Forum this week laid 22 charges against the last apartheid-era head of state and former Law and Order minister, Adriaan Vlok for crimes committed against blacks during apartheid.
Some of the charges relate to the Sebokeng massacre in 1991 in which 27 mourners were killed while attending a night vigil for slain ANC member, Chris Nangalembe.
The University of KwaZulu-Natal's Shaka Yesufu says the courts are likely to question the timing of the charges brought against the two.
"Where was this group all these years? With all said and done, they are entitled to their rights to open charges at a police station. It is whether those charges will go ahead in a court of law when it comes to the interpretation of the law.
"South Africa has moved on with the TRC's inquiry and arrests. To do this, we are turning back the hands of time," he said.
(File photo: Gallo Images)