The De Wet Potgieter collection is the product of the donor's career in the South African news and media over the course of 31 years.

Spanning the late apartheid and transitional periods, into the early 1990s, this collection is a reflection of De Wet's journalistic career, during which he carefully collected all the materials relating to his investigations and ultimate exposure of media disinformation, far right-wing activities and government malpractice. It further includes material relating to the many covert operations and front organisation of the South African Defence Force (SADF) and the undercover operations of the Security Branch of the South African Police (SAP). In his narrative to the collection he explains:

"As a result of my work as court reporter I came into contact with a lot of security policemen and intelligence operatives who made a point of talking to members of the Afrikaans language newspapers and passing on bits and pieces of information that the "lefties" did not get. Little did I realise at that stage that this was part of a very deliberate well orchestrated campaign in sowing dissent and disinformation to the media."

All through the years he was to keep "each and every document, top secret information and other material leaked" to him carefully collected in boxes. All these materials are now contained in the document series of the De Wet Potgieter collection. This series also includes materials relating to PW Botha and the Mandela tapes, PW Botha's last cabinet meeting, threats against the De Klerk regime, and the assassinations of Chris Hani and former Swedish prime minister Olof Palme.

The other series in this collection comprises the oral history interviews with individuals involved in military intelligence operations during the apartheid era, conducted by De Wet Potgieter on behalf of SAHA from 2009 to 2010 as a contracted employee . Materials in this series include the audio recordings, transcriptions, and English translations of Afrikaans transcriptions. SAHA is the copyright holder for these materials.The third and last series in this collection contain the Doug Lee photographic material.

Starting his career as a court reporter at the Afrikaans newspaper "Oggendblad" in 1974, he continued to work as municipal reporter, military correspondent and general reporter at some of the most significant Afrikaans newspapers in the country before he became news editor of "Die Vaderland". After a short stint as news editor of Afrikaans magazine "Rooi Rose" in 1986, he returned to the demanding realm of newspapers when he could no longer resist the call of the news desk. From 1986 to 1993 he was first bureau chief and then investigative journalist at the "Sunday Times". He next moved to the Afrikaans Sunday newspaper "Rapport" as investigative journalist until 2004.

It was at "Rapport" that he joined forces with his old friend and photographer Doug Lee, and together the two covered many groundbreaking stories, forming a formidable team as investigative journalist and news photographer. Doug Lee's photographs, many of which are a result of his teamwork with De Wet Potgieter, are now part of the De Wet Potgieter collection. Complementing De Wet's collection, many of Doug Lee's images document historic events leading up to the first post-apartheid democratic elections in South Africa in 1994. His lens also captures, in particular, many right-wing activities, including numerous Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB) marches with leader Eugene Terreblanche almost always in attendance.

De Wet Potgieter is the author of "Contraband, South Africa and the International Trade in Ivory and Rhino Horn", published by Quellerie Publishers in 1995, and "Total Onslaught", published by Zebra Publishers in 2007.

ANC - African National Congress

APLA - Azanian People's Liberation Army

AWB - Afrikanerweerstandsbeweging

BBB - Blanke Bevrydingsbeweging van Suid-Afrika

BSP - Boerestaat Party

CCB - Civil Cooperation Bureau

DCC - Directorate for Covert Collection

IFP - Inkatha Freedom Party

ITU - Investigation Task Unit

KVS - Kerk van die Skepper (Church of the Creator)

MK - Umkhonto we Sizwe

PAICC - Pan Afrik Industrial Investment Consultants

PAC - Pan Africanist Congress

SACP - South African Communist Party

SADF - South African Defence Force

SAIMR/SAIMAR - South African Institute of Maritime Research

SAP - South African Police

SDU - Self Defence Units

TREWITS - Teen-rewolusionere Inligtingtaakspan (Counter Revolutionary Intelligence Task Force)

VRMB - Verenigde Regse Massa Beweging

WAM - World Apartheid Movement

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