MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
18 September 2000
MEDIA BRIEFING

Documents handed out:
Briefing Document: Ministry of Defense (Minister Mosiuoa Lekota) [Appendeix 1]
Report by Ministerial Enquiry Commission [Appendix 2]

Minister Lekota emphasised that before making judgements on South Africa’s defence force one needs to realise that it comprises of members from the old SADF, APLA, MK, as well as soldiers from the old TBVC states. For all of them to work together is a feat in itself as they used to fight against each other. Considering the complexity of the situation he felt that the integration process has been a success as a whole.

Minister Lekota was disappointed that the general perception is that the situation is one of total failure. He stated that in 1994 people believed that there would be total chaos in South Africa but the reality was exactly the opposite. The feeling was that this chaos would flow over to the defence force. The Minister pointed out that in six years there had been only two tense situations, Tempe and Phalaborwa, that had erupted.

It was against this backdrop that they had appointed the Ministerial Enquiry Commission. The Minister stated that the Commission had drawn up a report setting out what the tensions are at present and how to address them. He added that they had already dealt with some of the problems set out in the report but that it was only the beginning of a comprehensive programme that they wanted to implement.

Minister Lekota stated that he would highlight some issues that he felt would be of interest to the public. He firstly emphasised the need for a Certified Personnel Register.
He stated that the need arose because people who do not deserve to be in the defence force are still there. The Minister stated that an audit was done on a sample group to check for discrepancies. The result of the sample audit was that discrepancies are present. He said that they had 3 options to deal with this problem:
· A recommendation was made to have a full audit but this would cost R40 million. If the discrepancies are minimal then it is not viable even if it is in the interests of transparency.
· A second recommendation was to grant a general amnesty to wrongdoers. The Minister felt that they do not have the legal right to do this. They lack the power.
· Thirdly, it was recommended not to have a full audit but in cases of fraud to prosecute case by case.
The Minister felt that the third option was the best one for them. He stated that all the parties with which he had consulted, agreed that that is the most viable option.

The Minister also stated that they intend South Africa to participate in international and national peacekeeping. He admitted that they have little experience in this field but that they are currently training their people in such activities. He added that he intends to send peacekeeping troops to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi.

Getting closer to home, the Minister stated that even though there had been budget cuts they are trying to maintain present military capability. However, much of their resource spending has been directed towards local problems such as helping the police and flood relief. He added that management problems also exist in the defence force due to the problem of internal communication. Staying with the issue of communication, Minister Lekota emphasised that language in the defence force is a problem as many of its members are not proficient in English and Afrikaans. He did however state that they are trying to address this problem.

Minister Lekota and General Nyanda (SANDF Chief) then answered questions.

Discussion
(Q) The proposed Arms Bill has many secrecy clauses, it is in direct conflict with your policy of transparency. Is there a change of policy on your part?

(A) Minister Lekota: There is no change of policy and definitely no need for secrecy. Our policy is still one of transparency and if the draft Bill contains secrecy issues it will be removed. We are still accountable to the public.

(Q) Is transformation at base level mainly for the old SADF members? Is there a problem that at present no transformation is taking place at base level?

(A) General Nyanda: It is a correct perception. At base level the leadership is predominantly white but the majority of the troops are black. Racism is a problem but we cannot solve it overnight. However it is not as bad as it was in 1994.

(Q) What is the nature of the competing military cultures?

(A) Minister Lekota: In the old SADF we had a conscripted force. People were forced to join the force. It was top heavy, when you get a command you have to carry it out even if you felt that it went against your principles. There was no input from lower ranked officers and grievance procedures were non-existent. At present the force is made up of volunteers. If any of them have a complaint it must be dealt with and besides, they can leave the force at any time. The Constitution states that military service is voluntary but we have a problem maintaining the numbers of our force as the numbers are decreasing. Soldiers have political rights as well, so we will have to find other ways to attract persons to the force. Even the military cannot infringe on a soldier’s constitutional rights.

(Q) Can you confirm that the ANC recently met in Port Elizabeth to discuss the issues of conscription and trade unions being introduced in the SANDF?

(A) General Nyanda: We are investigating these as options.

(Q) A report is circulating stating that a large portion of the SANDF is HIV positive. Is this of great concern to you?

(A) Minister Lekota: We are concerned about HIV as it affects the whole country. What is the source of the figures in the report? Some person could have sucked it out of his thumb. I do not know what the basis of these claims is. In general we are trying to lower HIV in South Africa.

(Q) If you are downsizing the SANDF then what is the point of conscription?

(A) Minister Lekota: We are still discussing conscription. It is not a definite as yet. We are looking to keep the numbers in the SANDF constant as existing members eventually leave or retire. Another possibility could be the use of reserves.

(Q) Human rights organisations have asked you to deal with the issue of human rights violations against gays and lesbians in the defence force during the apartheid years. What have you done in this respect?

(A) Minister Lekota: We have met with the Gay and Lesbian Coalition and explained to them that these violations should have been brought up at the TRC (Truth and Reconciliation Commission) hearings. We cannot give people another chance to vent their problems. I cannot spend money on this issue, as these people should have raised it then. An alternative would be for them to go to the courts to prosecute the guilty persons. I personally feel that I want to take action against the wrongdoers.

Your Excellencies-members of the Foreign Diplomatic Corps,

Members of the Media

Ladies and gentlemen

The Constitution of our country, the White Paper on Defence and the South African Defence Review demand of the country to have a smaller, professional representative defence force, capable of performing its primary and secondary functions efficiently and effectively.

A defence force, that respect the democratic political process, human rights and cultural diversity.

It is no secret that after the demise of apartheid, in the process of forming the South African National Defence Force, we brought together men and women with fundamental different military cultures. Men and women from the statutory forces, i.e. SADF and different TVBC states. These forces were conscripted, racially and ethnically based.

While on the otherhand the forces from the liberation formations were voluntary non-sexist, non-racial and not ethnically based.

By anybody standards it will be conceded that to bring together armed formations which had been at each other’s throats is a difficult task. But when the problem is compounded by a complexity of such issues as racial divisions, uneven levels of training, discrepancies in income, competition for promotion and training opportunities, etc. then the problem is overwhelming indeed.

It is against the backdrop of these issues that the shootings at Tempe occurred. And against that background the Ministry set up the Ministerial Inquiry into the direct and indirect causes of that catastrophe. The purpose was to understand the tensions that led and could lead to similar disasters if not attended to.

This committee has now submitted its first interim report. The findings and recommendations of the Ministerial Inquiry form part of my brief today. I will not take your time by reading through the document itself as copies are provided.

However, I want to point out that some of the problems had already been detected and steps taken to address them.

I have already tasked the Secretary for Defence and the Chief of SANDF to examine problems highlighted in the interim report of the Ministerial Inquiry.

Ladies and gentlemen, I would like also to touch on issues around integration.

A number of problems relating to integration have been identified. Some of these became apparent during my recent visits to the various basis of the SANDF. Others were raised sharply by men and women at unit level during our general interaction with them. An example of such problems is the issue of force numbers. It was felt by some that the current numbering of the members of the SANDF is open to abuse by individuals who are against transformation in the SANDF. We are dealing with this issue with the view of taking corrective measures.

The other matter is related to the Certified Personnel Register. A sample audit was conducted of the Integration Process.

Irregularities were detected flowing from the flawed process of the compilation of the Certified Personnel Registers.

A decision had to be made on whether on the basis of the sample we were to conduct a full audit of all integrated personnel.

It was decided to acknowledge that the process of integration guided by the compiling of, and reference to the Certified Personnel Registers was faulty. As a result of which some mistakes occurred. While there is not enough cause to go for a full audit we have taken the decision that where fraud is detected the law will take its cause.

There will be no amnesty with regard to these offences.

I would also like to point out that the process of integration is to be formally terminated. The termination of Integration Intake Process Bill is to be table during this session of Parliament.

Other legislations we are dealing with, are the National Conventional Arms Control Bill and the Defence Bill.

The role and functioning of The Arms industry is being re-examined. This has resulted in the Armscor Act being re-written.

• Budget cuts have severely hampered the SANDF in its efforts to maintain capabilities and readiness levels. The financial realities of our budget are forcing us to re-examine our functioning.

In addition, demands on the SANDF in relation to our secondary tasks have increased drastically

• There has been weak management of the transition process, which has given rise to many, administrative and audit problems. These are now being attended to but these deficiencies have scarred the Department.

• There are a number of problems, which engender tensions in the SANDF. They include: unfair treatment of members, racism, ongoing loyalty to formations of the past, suppression of complaints, failure to observe statutory disciplinary procedures, language, alleged theft of allowances by officers and the lack of a common military culture. The Ministry together with the Chief of the SANDF and the Defence Secretary are studying the interim report submitted by the Setai Committee of Inquiry with a view to addressing these problems.

• We have identified one of our major problems to be that of internal communications. Lack of internal communication has resulted in an undermining of the command structure and subsequent problems of low morale and weak discipline. Our communications divisions are preparing recommendations for solving this problem.

• Our greatest achievement has been to maintain our core defence capability. This has been in the face of numerous and complex difficulties

• We have successfully facilitated the introduction of military trade unions. We are optimistic that our relations with the military trade unions will be constructive.

• We have introduced a new Code of conduct which embodies a commitment to a new united defence force

• We have held a second successful gender conference and have recently had a productive meeting with the Gay and Lesbian Coalition.

Operations Boleas and Maluti in Lesotho were successfully concluded.

• We were able to respond timeously to the floods in the Northern Province, the Eastern Cape and in Mozambique, and to the fires in the Western Cape.

• Under the direction of the Department of Foreign Affairs we have signed international agreements with eleven countries and we have participated in four international forums this year.

• One of our responsibilities is to promote regional security through defence co-operation within the SADC framework.

• We maintain good relations with our neighbours and the SADC community. Since June 1999 we have signed defence agreements with Botswana, Lesotho, and Mozambique.

• And lastly, government has made the strengthening of the SADC a high priority. Subsequently the realm of activity defence is involved with is the Inter State Defence and Security Council (ISDSC).

I thank you. I will now take your questions.

Appendix 2:
SANDF FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

1. TRANSFORMATION
1.1 The SANDF is in the process of reengineering in order to achieve a new Force Design. Its objective is to have a smaller, efficient and representative Defence Force. However, currently the SANDF is somewhere between where it was in 1993/4 and the vision of where it should be at the end of the transformation. But there is apparently no clear-cut single integrated plan to get there.

1..2 Many structures, systems and processes have been, and are being put into place. But administrative procedures by themselves are not supporting a definite and ordered plan of action and this only leads to frustration.

1.3 There are a number of constraints hampering the above processes, namely the restrictions and or lengthy processes, in respect of people who should be leaving the organization. These restrictions should be eliminated as soon as possible.

The guidelines for the staffing process approved by the Defence Council are included in a document called Plan and Guidelines for Staffing the Military Component of the Transformed Department of Defence. (DS/502/8) While this document covers all the concerns that must be taken into account in the staffing process it is not necessarily strong on some critical ones. For example, on representivity, it states that 'representivity must be borne in mind". This statement does not make it imperative to implement representivity. The result is that staffing of the management echelon is not representative especially at the operational levels. The management at these levels is predominantly white. This suggests that not only is representivity ignored, but also prescripts developed by the Department of Public Service and Administration on fairness, equity and equal opportunities are not applied.

The Committee will make proposals on identified process gaps in the final report.

1 .4 There does not seem to be a co-ordinated integrated plan for transfers within the public service as a whole. The police are under strength while the Army is over strength with thousands of supernumeraries on its payroll and it spends most of its time assisting the police.

The part of the plan dealing with human resources needs special attention. In short, to meet the gender and race representivity affirmative action target figures (which need to be revised) there must be exit schemes for the outflow of those not anymore required, and entry schemes to obtain the staff and personnel needed.

1.5 Finance is perhaps the biggest constraint. The usual annual budget is intended for the normal capital, maintenance and running of the force year after year, and acknowledged formulae and norms apply. However usual annual and normal on the one hand, and change and transformation on the other hand, are contradicting terms and concepts. But we wish to note that transformation and affirmative action create abnormal and special conditions for a certain time period (until the goals are attained) which require funding that cannot be satisfied through the normal budget without cutting on things such as, for example essential housing and ablution facilities, or whatever, causing stresses for the people in the organization.

1.6 RECOMMENDATIONS
-Support should be mustered for the idea that the SANDF should be Allocated funds additional to its normal budget, specifically to Finance transformation including affirmative action.

-There are many reports of donor funds being used elsewhere in the Public service for the financing of transformation-related activities.
We recommended that the same avenues should be explored to facilitate transformation in the Defence Force.

2. RACISM
2.1 Racism does exist in the Defence Force. It manifests itself in many ways. It comes in the form of outright abusive language based on cultural origin, failure to empower people and active attempts to reduce their job responsibilities. Harassment such as instituting disciplinary actions against black members and going through with the process or leaving it in abeyance, thus living a member in limbo for an indefinite period. Subjecting members to assaults and intimidating them to ensure that they do not report the cases to the police. Excluding troops from the life and activities of the unit by not letting them participate in decision processes.

By seemingly acting in an indifferent and disinterested manner where grievances of the black troops are concerned. And most important, by condemning black members and not giving them a second chance even on minor infractions. By not giving black members the benefit of a doubt and always saying that they are ‘taking a chance' when they try to explain their predicaments. By abusing rank and using it as a mask to give orders that are not fully understood or are regarded as irregular by a member. Highlighting small infractions and making them look big.

2.2 Most OCs are of the opinion that grievances come from people whom are either supernumerary or unstaffed. The Committee does not support this position. In general members were concerned about their career incidences, whether they were staffed or not. Staffed people were all in one complaining about merits, abusive language, discrimination, assaults, courses, promotion, transport, attendance to funerals of colleagues and family, job assignments, use of Afrikaans, medals, poor accommodation, AWOL, Court Marshals, force numbers that identify people by previous forces and thus exposing them to undue prejudice and many others. It is unfortunate that some OCs have identified members who come to see the Committee as troublemakers.

One OC when he received us, said ‘I know that you will be seeing people on a voluntary basis. But I can tell you now which troublemakers will be coming to see you. He started to enumerate them and he stopped at fourteen. He then gave us a list of such people.

We noted the list and checked it carefully as people came to see us. We spend four days at that base and none of the enumerated troublemakers except three came to see us. We are elaborating on this point because there is a prevalent view that people who came to see the Committee are troublemakers. The Committee does not hold this view. In fact the Committee would be inclined to believe that the quality of most of the people who appeared before it is quite high.

2.3 Military culture is in a crisis because there has not been exercises to build the much-talked about one army concept. The top-down approach is in place but looses credibility at times due to perceived lack of commitment to some orders. The Ministerial Committee has received submissions alleging that military police were instructed at some units, not to arrest whites when found infringing the law. In some places, soldiers on guard duty are instructed not to search cars driven by whites. Discriminatory practices within the DoD will undermine discipline. Consequently, since discriminatory practises are pervasive in the DoD one can conclude that the DoD is responsible for lack of discipline.

Members from ex-Mk and ex-APLA point out that as much as they are soldiers, they came from culture where they were allowed to articulate their views within a democratic setting. They could hear and be heard. They say this is not the case in the SANDF. It is important to remedy this problem.

2.4 There are no sufficiently established monitoring Systems on discrimination.
Wrongs are dealt with without reprimand. The Committee has an example of fraud at one unit where the supervisor drew monies in the name of the troops. These were eleven and the money amounted to about R940 each. After the Committee intervened, the officer was made to pay the money back but was not charged for fraud. 2.5 Recommendation
The Ministerial Committee is in the process of addressing this problem and will make recommendations in the final report.

3. TRANSPORT TO 1 MILITARY HOSPITAL
3.1 The problem of transport to 1 Military Hospital is big due to a complexity of problems. In the first place, it is the quality of transport made available. Secondly the allowance which is in most cases higher for whites, thirdly, problems of leave to accompany a sick family member, fourthly accommodation when a member or his family gets to I Military, fifthly, the problems families not familiar with Pretoria encounter when they get there. The other problem, it would seem, is that the Defence Force recognises opinions of doctors working within their own structures and not others.

2. Recommendation
   As an interim measure pending recommendations by the Committee in its final report, the Minister should instruct the SAMHS to designate doctors in the areas where there are no military hospitals to treat the members and their families.
   
   4. COURT MARTIALS
   4.1 Evidence heard by the Ministerial Committee of Inquiry, points to a perception that trials before court martial or military judges is that of ‘white’ judges sentencing ‘black’ accused to a discharge from the SANDF, regardless of the type of offence.
   
   4.2. Recommendation
   The Ministerial Commission of Inquiry recommends that the Minister
   Direct the Chief of Military Legal Services or Adjutant-General to facilitate that the appointment of black attorneys and advocates as members of the Citizen Force/Reserve in order to serve as military judges on a part-time basis.
   
   5. MEDICAL BOARDS
   5.1 Members are discontinues from the Defence Force by the Medical Boards. However administrative justice is lacking in that the ex-member should be informed by the Board of the discharge recommendation and be invited to appeal. This does not happen and there is a long delay between the Medical Board decision and the discharge approval by the Surgeon General
   
   The perception is that these medical discharges on psychological grounds are used by the ‘white’ SAMHS officers to discharge ‘dissident’ blacks. Unlike medical discharges for reason of physical unfitness, psychological discharges are difficult to measure or prove.
   
   5.2 Recommendation
   The Ministerial Committee recommends that all members of the SANDF who are classified as medically unfit on psychological grounds, be advised of this recommendation by the Medical Board and that they be afforded an opportunity to appeal to the SG.
   
   Further the Ministerial Committee recommends that the Minister also approves such discharges after recommendation of the Surgeon General and the Chief of the Armed Forces.
   
   6. ADMISSION TO COURSES
   6.1 Many members find themselves in a frustrating situation in that they are unable to complete the course requirements because 'they do not get accepted in courses for which they have been nominated. In the meantime, they become desperate as the age restrictions constrain their chances. The criteria for officers training is that the applicant must have a Std. 10, be single and be 26 years of age or less. Some members claim that they have applied long before they reached this age, but were not accepted or their applications acknowledged. After they exceed this age, acknowledgements come quickly rejecting then on the grounds of age. There is a prevalent view that the age restriction could be relaxed as a once off measure to admit those who are fit and qualify to officer courses.
   
   6.2 Recommendation
   It is recommended that as a once off measure, people who have reached the age restriction but are fit and qualify, should be admitted in the officer courses at the Gymnasium.
   
   7. CLOSING OF BASES
   7.1 The closing of basis and the transfer of people have caused a lot of hardships to the members. Many have been transferred far away from their families and detachments have been discontinued. Others now have to travel long distances to their places of work. Duty busses have been discontinued. The result is that 'these hardships contribute towards more AWOLs. Out of the practicality of the situation. Some OCs have authorized "illegally" the use of duty busses. As the members experience these hardships. the military rules and regulations are not flexible to accommodate the changing environment.
   
   Many find themselves in housing that is worse than before. These quarters are often overpopulated with totally inadequate ablution facilities. Non-public funds in some cases, such as Regimental Funds, are now being used to improve housing facilities. This causes a lot of stress between troops and management The housing situation at Ellisras is scandalous. About 170 soldiers live in a disused airforce hanger in the open and with no partitions. The toilet and shower facilities are limited. In many facilities, people find it difficult to study at night or get a good night's sleep due to the state of the bungalows. People living in such poor facilities wonder why they should pay rent equivalent to that paid by their counter parts that live in better facilities.
   
   The DoD recognizes 'that it has a membership whose age profile is changing. The average age is well above 25. Most of the members are married and have families. SAMHS has also indicated that the disease profile is also changing reflecting that of older people. The Committee was informed that this is not a desirable situation to have older people particularly in infantry. ln the meantime, there are no clear policies to address this problem. The question to be answered is, does the DoD want to keep older people or not?

2. Recommendation

-The DoD should recognize that it has a membership with a changing age profile in the medium term and change its policies, mindset and systems to accommodate them.

-To alleviate the situation, detachment should be re-instituted to allow members to settle their family problems.

-Duty buses should be reintroduced, albeit, as an interim measure.

-Housing should be improved without having to use non-public funds such as Regimental Funds.

-The issue of food supplies to the people in the Kruger National Park should be reviewed as a matter of urgency.

8. LACK OF SELF EXPRESSION
People have little opportunity to articulate their problems. They are not given chance to express themselves. They reported that when they inquire about any issue affecting their well being, they are told that they are politicking and politics belongs to parliament. That is where they must go. Similarly, when they raise questions about issues having to do with duty schedules, they are told, in some cases, that they should refer their questions to parliament.

9. A SPECIAL PROMOTION ISSUES
Just about every where, there are troops who complain that they were once told that they had to be promoted but nothing has happened. It would seem that very often, the formation would inform the units that a certain category of members has been promoted. A list bearing their names would then be read to the members. However, a step that is often skipped is to inform members that they must write letters of acceptance. Since this is not done, the affected members remain in the same rank. Their pleas to have such a situation redressed are not acted upon.

9.2 Recommendation
It is recommended that an audit of such cases be done so as to redress the situation.