Through the Constitution, the NPRC is mandated to deal with these and other issues for a period of
ten years. Participants expected the following:
More work needs to be done in the rural areas where violations occurred;
Participants expected to have a better understanding of the mandate of the NPRC’s mandate
and know who to approach to convey their experiences.
Participants also expected to see movement after the community dialogue, such as seeing the
NPRC coming to their communities to engage them and also complying with its Constitutional
mandate.
Unpacking human rights and the NPRC’s mandate
Sindiso Nxumalo, one of the trainees on 30 August 2019, opened the session by unpacking human
rights. This was an important process to chastise participants with information on human rights as TJ
is an element of human rights. This enabled survivors to also be able to establish the link between
conflict, human rights and TJ.
She illustrated conflict by using a picture which some see as a person’s face whilst others see as
animals and trees. She emphasised that conflict emanates from a situation in which people see things
differently and might degenerate into violence or progress. One of the participants noted that in cases
where there is acute disagreements, there is need for a mediator to diffuse violent confrontations.
Participants indicated that dialogue always resolve conflict by enabling both parties to share their
grievances and reconcile. If spaces for dialogue are not opened-up, bitterness will eventually take
people to their graves.
This session was ensued by explaining the Chapter four of the Constitution: Bill of Rights. Mr.Nkau and
Ms.Nxumalo co-facilitated this session. The rights to life, property, personal liberty, human dignity,
personal security, equality and non-discrimination were some of the major highlights of the
discussion. These rights were linked to how conflict such as Gukurahundi and Operation
Murambatsvina violated these rights and how everything culminates into the NTJWG’s call for
compensation, reparations and redress.
Figure 2: Sindiso Nxumalo unpacking human rights and the NPRC’s mandate.
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