All Zapiro’s cartoons are drawn with a very sharp pen. Nonetheless only one of his cartoons has ever been ‘pulled’. A cartoon depicting former President FW de Klerk’s responsibility (as head of the Apartheid State and its security forces) for the atrocities that emanated from the notorious “Vlakplaas”, with De Klerk’s head as the proverbial tip of the iceberg, was ‘pulled’ by The Sowetan, for whom the cartoon was drawn. The newspaper was of the opinion that the cartoon was potentially defamatory. Zapiro had therefore to replace De Klerk’s head with that of Eugene de Kock, the self-confessed commander of “Vlakplaas”. Both cartoons form part of the Collection.

This collection was initially arranged by subject matter. In order to portray the sequence of events during the TRC the cartoons have now been arranged by year.

This collection is made up of documents containing information that relates to the negotiations that took place at the end of Apartheid in South Africa and the subsequent discussions that would precede the first ever democratic, free and fair elections in South Africa in 1994.

Some access conditions apply to portions of the collection.

Materials collected from TRC Archival Audit.

The TRC Archival Audit

Between 2003 and 2006, SAHA and Historical Papers, University of Witwatersrand embarked on a project to locate, retrieve and make available records relating to the South African Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC). The project entailed conducting an archival audit of all existing TRC records in order to identify and locate documentation in danger of being lost.

In the process of conducting the archival audit, SAHA and HP located many collections from individuals and organizations that participated in the TRC process, including this collection. Selections from these materials as well as TRC related material found in the freedom of Information Collection and other pre-existing SAHA and HP collections, were digitized and can be accessed online at http://truth.wwl.wits.ac.za/

A guide to archival resources relating to South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission can also be found at http://www.saha.org.za/pdf/trc_directory.pdf

The papers that make up this collection originated at varoius national and international conferences that focused on the South African TRC to which Villa-Vicencio had been invited to speak in his private capacity, but as an expert on the TRC.

Materials collected from TRC Archival Audit.

The TRC Archival Audit

Between 2003 and 2006, SAHA and Historical Papers, University of Witwatersrand embarked on a project to locate, retrieve and make available records relating to the South African Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC). The project entailed conducting an archival audit of all existing TRC records in order to identify and locate documentation in danger of being lost.

In the process of conducting the archival audit, SAHA and HP located many collections from individuals and organizations that participated in the TRC process, including this collection. Selections from these materials as well as TRC related material found in the freedom of Information Collection and other pre-existing SAHA and HP collections, were digitized and can be accessed online at http://truth.wwl.wits.ac.za/

A guide to archival resources relating to South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission can also be found at http://www.saha.org.za/pdf/trc_directory.pdf

Documents include recommendations, press releases and papers by the organisation in relation tp the TRC. Two documents were jointly prepared with Amnesty International.

Materials collected from TRC Archival Audit.

The TRC Archival Audit

Between 2003 and 2006, SAHA and Historical Papers, University of Witwatersrand embarked on a project to locate, retrieve and make available records relating to the South African Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC). The project entailed conducting an archival audit of all existing TRC records in order to identify and locate documentation in danger of being lost.

In the process of conducting the archival audit, SAHA and HP located many collections from individuals and organizations that participated in the TRC process, including this collection. Selections from these materials as well as TRC related material found in the freedom of Information Collection and other pre-existing SAHA and HP collections, were digitized and can be accessed online at http://truth.wwl.wits.ac.za/

A guide to archival resources relating to South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission can also be found at http://www.saha.org.za/pdf/trc_directory.pdf

The Urban Research Services Group was formed in 1988 and provided support, in the form of a research capacity, to civic associations in South Africa, such as the South African Civic Association (SANCO).

The collection comprises five items that document Watson's ongoing concerns with her TRC experience. She also recorded her thoughts about 'third force' operations and violence in the KwaZulu-Natal Region. This records accumulation constitutes a donation of photocopies of Watson's private TRC papers. She has retained the originals.

Materials collected from TRC Archival Audit.

The TRC Archival Audit

Between 2003 and 2006, SAHA and Historical Papers, University of Witwatersrand embarked on a project to locate, retrieve and make available records relating to the South African Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC). The project entailed conducting an archival audit of all existing TRC records in order to identify and locate documentation in danger of being lost.

In the process of conducting the archival audit, SAHA and HP located many collections from individuals and organizations that participated in the TRC process, including this collection. Selections from these materials as well as TRC related material found in the freedom of Information Collection and other pre-existing SAHA and HP collections, were digitized and can be accessed online at http://truth.wwl.wits.ac.za/

A guide to archival resources relating to South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission can also be found at http://www.saha.org.za/pdf/trc_directory.pdf

Materials collected from TRC Archival Audit.

The TRC Archival Audit

Between 2003 and 2006, SAHA and Historical Papers, University of Witwatersrand embarked on a project to locate, retrieve and make available records relating to the South African Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC). The project entailed conducting an archival audit of all existing TRC records in order to identify and locate documentation in danger of being lost.

In the process of conducting the archival audit, SAHA and HP located many collections from individuals and organizations that participated in the TRC process, including this collection. Selections from these materials as well as TRC related material found in the freedom of Information Collection and other pre-existing SAHA and HP collections, were digitized and can be accessed online at http://truth.wwl.wits.ac.za/

A guide to archival resources relating to South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission can also be found at http://www.saha.org.za/pdf/trc_directory.pdf

Some access conditions apply to portions of the collection.

Materials collected from TRC Archival Audit.

The TRC Archival Audit

Between 2003 and 2006, SAHA and Historical Papers, University of Witwatersrand embarked on a project to locate, retrieve and make available records relating to the South African Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC). The project entailed conducting an archival audit of all existing TRC records in order to identify and locate documentation in danger of being lost.

In the process of conducting the archival audit, SAHA and HP located many collections from individuals and organizations that participated in the TRC process, including this collection. Selections from these materials as well as TRC related material found in the freedom of Information Collection and other pre-existing SAHA and HP collections, were digitized and can be accessed online at http://truth.wwl.wits.ac.za/

A guide to archival resources relating to South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission can also be found at http://www.saha.org.za/pdf/trc_directory.pdf

The collection is organized by two major themes: activist work in the 1980s and up to 1998 (when the Treatment Action Campaign was formed); and activist work post-1998, concentrated around the Treatment Action Campaign. The brief biographies of Zackie Achmat and Jack Lewis contained in the introduction of this inventory provide some indication of the work done by each as individuals and as part of a collective.

Often either Jack or Zackie would start a project and then include the other in its ongoing implementation. As a result, the authorship of many documents in this collection cannot be clearly attributed to either Jack Lewis or Zackie Achmat.

The collection comprises of documents (hard copies) stored in archive boxes and electronic documents (stored on the SAHA drive according to file number) as well as audio-visual materials (please see the SAHA archivist for access to these documents). There are also a number of posters in the collection that is stored with the SAHA Poster Collection (AL2446).The SAHA Posterdatabase indicates the cross-referencing of the posters to this collection.

Some materials are restricted access. Restrictions are noted next to the title of the documents. Please see the SAHA archivist should you require access to these documents.