US Edition2 Former South African Apartheid Police Officers Are Convicted of Killing an Activist 38 Years Ago
Two apartheid-era officers convicted for the 1987 murder of activist Caiphus Nyoka after a 2019 confession and decades of impunity in political killings, court records show.
- Tuesday, two former apartheid-era police officers were convicted in the killing of activist and student leader Caiphus Nyoka by a judge at the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg.
- Following a public confession in 2019, the case returned to court after more than 30 years, while the Truth and Reconciliation Commission reexamined Nyoka's death and no one accepted responsibility at the time.
- In a predawn raid, officers from the Reaction Unit and Special Branch attacked Nyoka's family home near Johannesburg; forensic findings show he was shot at least 12 times, police were cleared claiming self-defense.
- The trial produced mixed outcomes including an acquittal and a guilty plea as Johan Marais, former Reaction Unit member, pleaded guilty while a third former police officer was acquitted and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended hundreds for probes.
- This year, South African authorities began revisiting alleged apartheid-era abuses after public pressure, while a new inquiry will examine if post-apartheid governments led by the ANC blocked investigations.
18 Articles
18 Articles
In South Africa, it's a judgment that has been expected for 38 years. One night in August 1987, police officers enter the home where Caiphus Nyoka, a young anti-apartheid activist, lives and kills him coldly. For several decades, these policemen escape justice. But it was without counting on the fight of his sisters and human rights associations. An investigation is finally reopened. A trial is taking place. Last September, one of the policemen …
In Activist's Apartheid-Era Killing, Justice Finally Comes
Two former apartheid-era police officers in South Africa were found guilty of murder Tuesday in the 1987 killing of activist and student leader Caiphus Nyoka. Nyoka's fatal shooting at his family home near Johannesburg during the period of white minority rule was one of many alleged abuses by apartheid police...
Associated Press News
2 former South African apartheid police officers are convicted of killing an activist 38 years ago
Two former apartheid-era police officers in South Africa have been found guilty of murder in the 1987 killing of activist and student leader Caiphus Nyoka.
Both ex-cops were brought to trial after another ex-agent publicly confessed to Nyoka's murder in 2019, more than 30 years later.
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