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Athol Trollip, Democratic Alliance leader in Eastern Cape, has “rejected” the decision by the South African Human Rights Commission to not investigate complaints of human rights abuses at his family farm in Bedford and says he is weighing his options to clear his family’s name.
Trollip and his family were accused by former farm workers at Mount Prospect Farm outside Bedford of human rights abuses, including racism and unfair labour practices.
The DA mayoral candidate at the hotly contested Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality does not feel vindicated by the commission but is angry that his name and that of his family were dragged through the mud for nothing but cheap politicking.
The allegations included that Trollip had called his workers “baboons” and paid them paltry salaries. These were contained in statements by the former workers, submitted to the South African Human Rights Commission last month.
The commission said that after investigating the matter it had decided to “reject the complaint and would not be investigating the matter” any further.
Its spokesperson Isaac Mangena told City Press that the commission’s investigation included perusing the affidavits and speaking to some of those involved after receiving the complaints on February 24.
“The commission did indeed investigate several complaints brought by former farm employees against the Trollip family. Various affidavits [which contained] allegations of unfair labour practice, minimal wages and hate speech, among others, were provided,” Mangena said.
Mangena said during their assessment of the case they found that the allegations related to unfair labour practices and bad working conditions during the 1970s, 80s, 90s and early 2000s.
They all took place before the inception of the commission and the Constitution of the new democracy, Mangena said. He said issues of pre-jurisdiction came through and because of this they could not pursue the case.
“We have sent a letter to communicate this and the reasons to the complainants. We have also advised them of an option to appeal our decision,” he said.
But all this has infuriated Trollip, who felt aggrieved that he was not contacted by the commission to give his side of the story or was informed that allegations against him were being investigated despite his lawyers writing to the commission.
“I don’t feel vindicated at all. The South African Human Rights Commission say they are not investigating the matter but they make a finding without even interviewing me once – the person against whom these allegations were made. They must provide administrative justice.”
Mangena said the commission did not have to speak to Trollip to arrive at their decision because he was a respondent in the matter.
“In terms of our complaints handling procedure we need not speak to the respondent during the assessment of the complaints. We can only speak to the respondent should we feel there are allegations that need to be answered, in which case we would have already started an investigation,” he said.
Mangena said that: “Mr Trollip is free to engage the commission if there is something he feels we should look at.”
Trollip said he has instructed his attorneys to deal with the commission.
“This is absolutely outrageous. You can’t have people in a constitutional state just throwing mud without any proof or evidence whatsoever. And then have an organisation like the South African Human Rights Commission playing mind games in an investigation where they have not even spoken to me,” said an irate Trollip.
Meanwhile the South African National Civic Organisation (Sanco) reacted with disappointment that the matter was dropped by the commission. Sanco proposed that a Truth and Reconciliation Commission mechanism for racism in farming communities be done.
“I have no comment to make about what Sanco want to do in this regard. I know how I and my family treated and remunerated our staff and I am taking the necessary steps to protect my and our reputation, in the high court and am contesting the woefully inadequate response, about these false allegations, by the human rights commission.”
“The Trollip allegations, like many others affecting thousands of victims, should be taken through the TRC process to contribute towards deepening reconciliation and addressing underlying causes of violence in farming communities,” said Sanco national spokesperson, Jabu Mahlangu.
Mahlangu said compensation of victims who had suffered humiliation and atrocities at the hands of farmers in the past are critical for them to find closure and continue with their lives.
“Perpetrators must take responsibility. The notion that racial abuse and exploitation has ended in our farming communities is a fallacy that undermines reconciliation, nation-building and social cohesion,” said Mahlangu.
