We, the members of the Khulumani Galela Campaign, are victims, veterans and survivors of the liberation struggle. We suffered gross human rights violations under apartheid; today, our movement demands the redress, reparation and justice from our post-apartheid government promised under the Truth and Reconciliation Commission 25 years ago. Our campaign outside the Constitutional Court has been covered accurately and effectively in Daily Maverick via stories, for example, in October 2021, June 2022 and November 2023. 

We reject misrepresentations of our struggle, and of our members collectively and individually, published in Daily Maverick on 23 January 2024 under the headline “Conflict on Constitution Hill – strife, division ripple through reparations fight for apartheid victims”.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Conflict on Constitution Hill — strife, division ripple through reparations fight for apartheid victims

This story claims that Khulumani’s “decades-long fight for reparations is now being marred by organisational in-fighting, power struggles and accusations of manipulation that threaten the likelihood of the victims receiving the reparations they say they are owed”. 

It describes the primary source for these statements as follows: “KSG National Director Marjorie Jobson sent the publication a letter raising the alarm on an alleged hijacking of the Khulumani Support Group and the manipulation of KSG members by ‘corrupt leaders’.” This letter claims that the Galela Campaign is a hijacked and cloned splinter of the long-established NGO Khulumani Support Group; that Galela’s “corrupt leaders” are “(mis)using Khulumani members whose life circumstances render them profoundly vulnerable, to create spectacles of suffering that have further delayed progress in securing government’s commitment to a concrete partnership with Khulumani Support Group”.

A group of elderly protesters have been taking part in a three-month stay-in outside the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg, calling for the government to pay out reparations promised during the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. (Photo: Lerato Mutsila)

The article further alleges that “the Khulumani protesters were being manipulated to swindle tourists (to the ConHill heritage site) out of money”. 

The article’s cited source is an “anonymous” tip from a person “with links to” Constitution Hill.

The article contains a response from Galela Campaign national organiser Nomarussia Bonase. Positioned halfway down the article, and framed as having been made during a “heated interview”, Bonase states: 

“Majorie Jobson was legally dismissed from Khulumani in 2019. Since then she has been creating all these issues, trying to intervene with our work outside the Constitutional Court.”  

These allegations have upset, angered and retraumatised Galela members. They have the potential to seriously damage our organisation’s reputation and our campaign. For this reason, the Galela Campaign sought the right of reply from Daily Maverick. 

We respond with the following facts:

First, that Galela leaders “illegitimately cloned and hijacked Klumani”:

Dr Jobson was dismissed as national director of the Khulumani Support Group in August 2019 by the board. This dismissal followed investigation, failed mediation with the CCMA, and a disciplinary hearing which found Dr Jobson guilty on 11 of 12 serious charges.  (See document A). Dr Jobson has not challenged the outcome of her disciplinary or her dismissal through legal processes. 

• Two weeks before the disciplinary, in April 2019, while Dr Jobson was suspended and under investigation by the board, she convened what she termed a “national Khulumani meeting”. She personally selected attendees, who included no representatives elected by Khulumani membership nor the existing board. The meeting thus had no standing in terms of the Khulumani constitution. However, Dr Jobson claims it reinstated her as national director, and replaced the board wholesale;
• Following publication of the disciplinary findings, Dr Jobson entered the Khulumani national offices at Khotso House in Johannesburg during a weekend, removed files, computers and organisational property, and seized access to the database and website; with which she opened her own “Khulumani national office” in Pretoria;
• The legitimate Khulumani board laid charges with the SAPS (Hawks, Gauteng) against Dr Jobson for theft of the organisation’s data and equipment, misuse of name, perjury, fraud and uttering (case no CAS 8963/6/2019 JHB Central). Through two years of Covid restrictions, the SAPS apparently did little to investigate these charges. In January 2023 the NPA notified us that they had insufficient evidence to take the matter to court; and
• Dr Jobson’s Pretoria structure today uses KSG’s NPO number, registered in 2000. In September 2022, KSG registration at the Department of Social Welfare listed the Khulumani board and officials who were elected in 2015 – including both Bonase and Seidman; with no mention of members of Dr Jobson’s structure. As the listed board members of Khulumani Support Group, we alerted the Department of Social Welfare to Dr Jobson’s irregular use of our organisation’s name and NPO number (see document B attached).

Second, that Galela leaders are “corrupt”:

This allegation is false and unsupported by any evidence.

Third, that “conflict and strife” prevail among Galela campaign members:

Our members are united and have, through numerous resolutions and public statements at branch, regional and national level, repeatedly rejected Dr Jobson’s claims to represent them. (See, for example, attached document C: A statement signed by Khulumani members in May 2022, following earlier media comments by Dr Jobson’s structure) 

Fourth, that Galela is “swindling tourists” at Constitution Hill:

The Galela Campaign vehemently rejects this. As Galela members, we talk to visitors to the ConCourt about our campaign and the role of human rights in our post-apartheid nation and the world (including Gaza). These conversations honour the ConCourt as a memorial site of struggle and history, and all who value our people’s freedom and equality. Voluntary donations to our campaign go towards food and medicine for protest participants, with transparent accounting for incoming and outgoing funds. 

The Khulumani Galela Campaign is seeking further legal direction on how best to respond to Dr Jobson’s repeated false claims.

As Galela national organiser Nomarussia Bonase declares:

“Allegations like these, especially clearly spurious and fabricated ones, can only give the government the excuse to ignore and sideline the legitimate demands of citizens; the excuse to continue to refuse to provide reparation and justice. We will not be deterred or sidetracked by these tactics. We continue to call for human rights, justice and redress. Nobody and nothing will stop us.” DM

Submitted to Daily Maverick as a right to reply by Judy Seidman on behalf of the Khulumani Galela Campaign. Daily Maverick will not publish any further comment on this issue.