| (1) | The objectives of the Commission shall be to promote national unity and reconciliation in a spirit of understanding which transcends the conflicts and divisions of the past by— |
| (a) | establishing as complete a picture as possible of the causes, nature and extent of the gross violations of human rights which were committed during the period from 1 March 1960 to the cut-off date, including the antecedents, circumstances, factors and context of such violations, as well as the perspectives of the victims and the motives and perspectives of the persons responsible for the commission of the violations, by conducting investigations and holding hearings; |
| (b) | facilitating the granting of amnesty to persons who make full disclosure of all the relevant facts relating to acts associated with a political objective and comply with the requirements of this Act; |
| (c) | establishing and making known the fate or whereabouts of victims and by restoring the human and civil dignity of such victims by granting them an opportunity to relate their own accounts of the violations of which they are the victims, and by recommending reparation measures in respect of them; |
| (d) | compiling a report providing as comprehensive an account as possible of the activities and findings of the Commission contemplated in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c), and which contains recommendations of measures to prevent the future violations of human rights. |
| (2) | The provisions of subsection (1) shall not be interpreted as limiting the power of the Commission to investigate or make recommendations concerning any matter with a view to promoting or achieving national unity and reconciliation within the context of this Act. |
| (3) | In order to achieve the objectives of the Commission— |
| (a) | the Committee on Human Rights Violations, as contemplated in Chapter 3, shall deal, among other things, with matters pertaining to investigations of gross violations of human rights; |
| (b) | the Committee on Amnesty, as contemplated in Chapter 4, shall deal with matters relating to amnesty; |
| (c) | the Committee on Reparation and Rehabilitation, as contemplated in Chapter 5, shall deal with matters referred to it relating to reparations; |
| (e) | the subcommittees, referred to in section 5(c), shall exercise, perform and carry out the powers, functions and duties conferred upon, assigned to or imposed upon them by the Commission. |
[Subsection (3)(e) substituted by section 2(b) of Act No. 87 of 1995]
[Date of commencement of section 3: 10 April 1996]
