MESSINA - The Matatshe Prisoners’ Support Committee (MPSC), has appealed to Dep Pres Jacob Zuma for assistance in the release of the remaining “witch-hunters”, presently serving time in the Matatshe Prison.

The seven prisoners were convicted for killing “witches” in the former Venda, together with 33 other people.

The Amnesty Committee of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee set the other 33 free after their appearance before the committee in 1999 and 2000. The committee, however, found unlike the other 33 people, the seven prisoners could not be linked with politics, as they claimed. During their appearance before TRC, they claimed that they attacked, torched and killed “witches” for political reasons.

The chairman of the MPSC, and Municipal Manager of Messina, Mr Abram Luruli, said he met Zuma during the official opening of the roadside clinic at Beit Bridge a fortnight ago. During their meeting, which was held at the municipal offices, Luruli presented a document to Zuma. In the document, they outlined how the committee assisted the inmates to appear before the Truth and Reconciliation Committee and what happened to each of the forty inmates.

The MPSC then discussed with Zuma the possibilities of pardoning the seven inmates.

Zuma, who was accompanied by the Minister of Health, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang undertook to look into the matter and to investigate how the remaining inmates could be assisted. Zuma also promised the MPSC that he would come back to them as quickly as he could.

Luruli said they were hopeful that the Deputy President would be able to come back to them with good news within a short period of time. “We are confident that the remaining inmates would be released soon. We believe that the efforts our committee put together during the TRC hearings would be lost if the remaining inmates were not released. Our appeal to the government is that they should pardon the remaining seven inmates, as they did not qualify for release in terms of the TRC provisions. We are sure that our government will assist us in this matter,” said Luruli.