Necklacing of Maki Skosana

One of most notorious cases of summary justice was addressed by the TRC. In July 1985 Maki Skosana was necklaced by her comrades.

They believed that she had betrayed eight young COSAS activists on the East Rand to the security forces, who then killed them.

The necklacing of Maki Skosana was filmed by the South African Broadcasting Corporation and frequently used by the apartheid state media in anti-resistance propaganda. In 1995 the askari (former African National Congress soldier turned death squad operative) Joe Mamasela told the TRC that Maki Skosana was working with him (SABC 1995).

However, the situation was more complex. Upon investigation of the case the TRC made the following finding:

Ms Maki Skhosana was wrongly accused of being an informer and responsible for the death of the 'comrades' in the booby-trapped hand grenade incidents.

The commission finds that Ms Skhosana was not aware of the fact that 'Mike' was Joe Mamasela, an askari.

The commission finds that the necklacing was a gruesome act of extraordinary violence that cast a blight on the struggle for freedom.

The commission finds the 'comrades' and the community at Duduza responsible for the necklacing of Ms Skhosana, and that the UDF [United Democratic Front] and the ANC [African National Congress] must accept responsibility for this gross violation of human rights (TRC 1998, vol 3: 667).

http://www2.fmg.uva.nl/lpca/jlpca/vol1/narismulu.html