RUSSELL ALLY
Thank you, Chairperson.  Just to welcome some more people.  The Mayor of Heidelberg, Ms B, Ms Molosokeng. It seems that the East Rand probably have the most woman Mayors
and Deputy-Mayors than anywhere in, in the country and the Deputy-Mayor of Springs, also Ms Antie Nakitela, Deputy-Mayor of Springs and the Mayor of Heidelberg.  Welcome to you.  
 We have statement takers here with us today for those who still want to make statements who have not made statements yet.  Our statement takers are at the back of this hall in the Administration Block.  Now, I want to emphasise that in the work of the Commission, what is most important is the process of making statements, that all the work that the Commission does is based on the statements which come to us, that we go through every statement as carefully as possible, we try and investigate as far as we can, we try to find out as much of the truth as possible and at the end of the work of the Commission we have to make findings as to whether people are victims of gross human rights violations as defined in the Act.  This is very important because on the basis of those decisions the Reparations and Rehabilitations Committee makes recommendations to the President and through him to Parliament as to a policy for victims of gross human rights violations.  
 Now, I know that many people who have made statements become very angry when they are not asked to appear in public hearings and that is, I think, because people may have the wrong idea that those who appear in public hearings are more important than those who do not.  That is certainly not the thinking of the Truth Commission.  When we select people to come to a public hearing what we try to do is select cases which give us some idea of the nature of the conflict.  So we try to use cases to give us some insight or a window into the nature of the conflict.  We do not choose people because we think their stories are more important or because they are more important.  We also try, we also try to cover the period that the Commission has to look at which is 1960 to 1994.  We also try to give as balanced a view of the conflict as possible because we know that the conflict was many sided.  
 In the East Rand, for example, we know that the conflict often involved members of the UDF and later the ANC and people who were seen to be members of Inkatha and later the IFP, Inkatha Freedom Party.  We have tried to get statements which show the other side of the conflict as seen from those people who may have been members or thought to have been members of the IFP and we hope that we will hear some of those cases during the course of the week.  We also hope to hear from people who were involved in local councils, in those structures which were set up by the Government so that we can get side of the conflict.  So, we want to ask people to please understand that if we could, if it was possible in terms of time and resources to, to hear everyone in a public hearing, that is what we would have done, but we cannot do that.  We do not have the time and we do not have the resources.  So we, so we have to select cases, but simply because you have not been selected for a public hearing does not mean that your case is any less important because we use the statements to make our decisions and recommendations.  
 So, again, I want to repeat that we have statement takers in the Administration Block and I would encourage those who have not made statements, to please make statements.  Thank you, Chairperson.