The first segment of this episode reports on the amnesty hearing (Cape Town, 20 to 21 October) of security policeman Jeffrey Benzien who is asking for amnesty for the torture of a number of political detainees as well as for the killing of Cape activist Ashley Kriel. It includes testimonies from Benzien's superiors and a former MK soldier tortured by Benzien. The following segment looks at the structure and processes of the Amnesty Committee including issues like remorse and justice. It also reflects on amnesties refused on the basis that racism does not constitute a political motive. Also included is a segment on reparation and rehabilitation. The Special Report team speaks to some of the first victims who gave testimony at the HRV hearings and to Truth Commissioners Hlengiwe Mkhize and Dr. Wendy Orr speak about the recommendations recently delivered to government by the Reparation and Rehabilitation Committee. In the final segment Jann Turner interviews Roland Hunter, a former conscript who was placed in the SADF's Directorate of Special Tasks and who passed intelligence to the ANC on the military's counter-insurgency operations in Mozambique and Angola. // Hello. Welcome to this week's Special Report, the 71st edition of our programme. We hope more of our former, regular viewers are getting used to our new, rather early timeslot. On tonight's programme we have reports from: Gael Reagon on the Cape Town torturers who want amnesty, Anneliese Burgess on the inside story of the amnesty process, René Schiebe on compensation for victims and Jann Turner on the story of an unlikely spy. An interesting menu of stories. Let's start with the amnesty hearings in Cape Town this past week. In June this year the country watched with fascinated horror as former security police captain Jeffrey Benzien re-enacted the torture method that gained him dubious fame, the wet bag method. Benzien is asking for amnesty for the torture of a number of political detainees as well as for the killing of Cape activist Ashley Kriel. This week he was joined by two of his superiours. Superintendent William Liebenberg is also asking for amnesty for torture. And the man who commanded them both, retired Major-General Kobus Griebenauw came to support his men and the atrocities they had committed in the name of the National Party government.
