THE ANC Youth League (ANCYL) hopes more apartheid crimes will be dealt with.
This follows the sentencing of former apartheid-era police officer, Johan Marais, for the murder of the Congress of South African Students (Cosas) and South African Youth Congress (Sayco) leader, Caiphus Nyoka.
ANCYL secretary-general Mntuwoxolo Ngudle commended the courage of the Nyoka family, especially Caiphus' mum Saroma Nyoka and his sisters, who fought tirelessly for truth and accountability, even after a flawed 1988 inquest that excused the perpetrators.
He said the court outcome underscores the critical importance of transitional justice in Mzansi's democracy.
"We reiterate that this sentence cannot bring Caiphus back, nor erase the trauma endured by his loved ones and community. Yet, it sends a powerful message that apartheid crimes, no matter how old, will be pursued and cannot be hidden by time or state secrecy," said Ngudle.
He described Caiphus from Daveyton, Ekurhuleni as a brave young man who died for a good cause.
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Caiphus was fatally shot at his family home in the early hours of 24 August 1987 by police officers intent on eliminating activists labelled "terrorists" by the apartheid regime.
"The sentence, delivered nearly 38 years later, is a long-overdue moment of justice for his family and for South Africans who yearn for accountability," said Ngudle.
The Pretoria High Court sitting in Benoni, Ekurhuleni, handed Marais a significant term of 15 years' imprisonment for the cold-blooded killing.
He had confessed to a journalist that he was involved in the 1987 murder and later pleaded guilty in court.
The ANCYL has called on the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and all South Africans to remain vigilant as the trials of co-accused Leon Louis van den Berg, Abraham Engelbrecht, and Pieter Stander continue.
Ngudle urged that justice be executed swiftly and fairly, in honour of Caiphus and other victims.
"This moment must also spur meaningful transformation. We must deepen our commitment to youth development, equality, and non-racialism. The apartheid regime's attack on young activists like Caiphus was an assault on the future, one that we must never forget, but must definitively reject," he said.
Ngudle added that the league stands firm that apartheid-era crimes have no place in a free society and until every perpetrator is held accountable, their work is not done.
