The Timol inquest has unlocked a web of conspiracy among the former security police, who despite their age are as tight as a secret society.

The subpoena by Judge Billy Motlhe of former policemen in John Vorster Square Joao Rodrigues and Neville Els, shows that it is actually still possible to pursue justice in these cases.

The Timol family was told for years that Rodrigues was living outside the country, therefore making him difficult to find. But ironically a source informed the inquest lawyers that he could be found in an old age home in a small town in South Africa.

Just like the former Nazi officers who thought they could fade into the fabric of society, take on another identity and live a normal life, so have the torturers of the apartheid regime.

The post-1994 promise to prosecute those guilty of gross human rights violations who did not apply for amnesty got largely neglected, and justice was never served.

It may be almost impossible at this point to get these security police to come clean about their crimes as they are fully aware that they could potentially face prosecutions given their non-disclosure at the TRC.

But the fact that the Timol inquest was reopened after 46 years has given hope to many families whose loved ones died in detention.

It is the first time that the families of the victims who are still looking for answers see that it still might be possible to get those responsible subpoenaed to testify.

Where there is enough evidence unearthed, “I cannot recall,” or “I never participated myself,” simply won’t cut it.

The South African Human Rights Commission is already fielding calls from families that are still desperately seeking closure regarding the deaths and disappearance of their relatives.

They are now pursuing ways to bring enough evidence to the fore so that the NPA may consider prosecuting the cases. There just needs to be enough unity of purpose between politicians, the NPA, civil society, and the South African Human Rights Commission to make it happen.

Just a few of the prospective cases include that of Dr Neil Aggett who died in John Vorster Square in 1982 - the state claimed he hung himself.

The main interrogator of Aggett was Steven Whitehead who is still alive and marketing himself as an intelligence business expert, and will likely be subpoenaed to testify at a reopened inquest in the near future. Whitehead allegedly led the brutal torture of Aggett in detention.

The families of other victims of deaths in custody remain anxious up to today for the truth about how their relatives died. One of the earlier cases was that of Babla Saloojee who died in custody in 1964 in the security police headquarters known as the Gray's building.

The police claimed that Saloojee jumped from the Gray's building to his death. The inquest only lasted 5 minutes and the state claimed it was suicide.

Then there is the case of Matthews Mabalena who died in John Vorster Square in 1977 - the state said he “accidentally” fell from the 10th floor.

Some of the most ludicrous explanations of the state for deaths in detention were Nicodemus Kgoathe, who the state said died from natural causes – bronchial pneumonia after slipping in the shower in 1969.

Then there was Solomon Modipane who was also said to have died of natural causes by slipping on a bar of soap in detention the same year. It would only be natural that all of the relatives of these men must still be yearning for the truth to come out, just as the Timol family has been.

The Foundation for Equality before the Law, whose objective is to ensure that former security policeman who never applied for amnesty for their crimes are never prosecuted, must be working overtime.

They cannot afford to have former security police like Els and Rodrigues break ranks and give an inch. They are likely concerned that the result would be a domino effect whereby the wall of secrecy would come tumbling down, and could unleash a wave of prosecutions that will see torturers forced to testify about their crimes.

To men like JP Botha who runs the foundation, the security police operated in “a time of war” and many were just “following orders.” We heard it all before from the Nazis during the Nuremberg trials following World War Two.

Critical to the self-interest of former security policemen is to maintain absolute silence regarding deaths in custody on their watch in the police cells of John Vorster Square, Pretoria, Port Elizabeth, Modderbee, Caledon Square, Butterworth, Klerksdorp, Johannesburg Fort, Maitland, Carletonville,

Pietermaritzburg, Brighton Beach, Durban central, among a number of others. A total of 89 detainees died in detention between 1963 and 1990.

The concern of former security policemen is that if one of them breaks, chances are that others will have the courage to speak out too, and then prosecutions will follow.

By sticking to his original story given to the 1971 inquest, Rodrigues portrayed a version of events so highly improbable that even Judge Motlhe gave him a last chance to recant before leaving the stand.

None of the other evidence brought to the inquest supported his version. But with an almost constant smirk, Rodrigues repeated the fabricated story given to him by his superiors, and where there were holes, he would tailor the evidence as he went along.

Judge Motlhe told Rodrigues he had a number of issues with his testimony, outlining them in detail. They included:

•        Why it was that both Els and Rodrigues claimed to not have known anything about the assault of detainees, and both made the identical claim that they only heard about it through the media.

•        If Rodrigues had been instructed to guard Timol who he was told was a “valuable detainee,” and he failed to stop him from diving out the window, why was there no disciplinary inquiry ever held considering a detainee had escaped?

•        According to Rodrigues’ testimony, General Buys had instructed him on what to include in his affidavit. This type of interference in the formulation of affidavits resulted in a pattern of statements common to Rodrigues, Timol’s torturers Captains Johannes Gloy and Fanie van Niekerk, as well as another interrogator Richard Bean. Those statements were “I never assaulted anyone,” and “detainees were never assaulted in my presence.”

•        Even before Rodrigues signed his affidavit, General Buys (the investigating officer into Timol’s death) had told the media that the death was a suicide, just three days after the incident.

•        It was the finding of Dr Scheepers, who was the pathologist in 1971 who did the autopsy, that there were a number of injuries on Timol’s body that were not consistent with a fall from the 10th floor of a building. These were also the findings of the medical doctors at the time. There were substantial injuries to Timol’s head, eye, and face, although Rodrigues claims not to have seen any injuries at all when he sat with him in Room 1026.

•        One of the injuries not consistent with a fall was to his left foot, which would have made it impossible for him to rush towards the window as Rodrigues claimed.

•        Had he dived out of the window as Rodrigues claimed, he would have landed much further away from the building than where his body was found – according to the testimony of a trajectory expert.

•        The only individuals in the original inquest who back up Rodrigues’ version were Timol’s interrogators Gloy, Van Niekerk, and Colonel Greyling, who themselves are implicated in at least 13 known cases of assault on detainees.

•        Rodrigues, who was a pay clerk, was given a commendation by the Commissioner of Police following the inquest – an honour usually reserved for those who have really distinguished themselves.

Rodrigues failed to provide any satisfactory answers to the Judge's issues. Given that Rodrigues has not been forthcoming with the truth, Advocate Howard Varney, acting for the Timol family, told Judge Motlhe that the family would now like to see Rodrigues charged with perjury, and either as an accessory to murder, or with the murder of Ahmed Timol.

Captains Gloy and van Niekerk, who were Timol’s main interrogators have already passed away, not having been subpoenaed to testify before the TRC.

The inquest also heard this week from Muhammed Ali Thoken, who had been filling petrol in his car at the petrol station across the road from John Vorster Square on the day Timol died on October 27, 1971.

Thoken testified that he heard a thud when Timol’s body hit the ground, and was told by a pedestrian that a man had fallen from the building, and the time of his fall was around mid-morning.

This was a key piece of evidence given that the police story since 1971 had been that Timol had fallen from the building at around 4pm.

Closing arguments in the inquest will be heard later in August, and is open to the public.

On Friday Judge Motlhe called on any member of the public who could be of assistance in the inquest to come forward and make contact with the Timol family lawyers at Webber Wentzl.

Source: IOL