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ABSTRACT
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was established to deal with the history and future prevention of the abuse of human rights in South Africa. It aimed to restore relationships between the state and/or other perpetrators and victims of violence. Nevertheless, the process has highlighted the alarming prevalence of psychological trauma in our society. This paper reports on a study of individuals and/or families who presented their testimonies to the TRC in the Kwa Zulu-Natal and Free State Provinces of South Africa. The participants were asked to complete a semi-structured questionnaire designed by the author and a Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist. Most witnesses had recognisable psychiatric disorders. The most common was post-traumatic stress disorder (chronic), followed by either anxiety and mood disorders. The results from this study point to the pervasiveness and seriousness of the sequelae of trauma experienced by individuals and communities (both victims and perpetrators) in South Africa. Health professionals in South Africa have the mammoth task and responsibility to assist in the process of healing and reparation.
Keywords: post-traumatic stress disorder, human rights violations, Truth and Reconciliation Commission, ethnicity.
INTRODUCTION
The apartheid system in South Africa was maintained through repressive means, depriving the majority of South Africans the most basic human rights and leaving a legacy of pervasive poverty and lack of opportunities. As part of the post-Apartheid transformation process in South Africa, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was established to deal with the history and future prevention of the abuse of human rights in this country. The TRC aimed to restore relationships between the state and/or other perpetrators and victims of violence, and to give people the opportunity to be psychologically healed by providing a facility and platform to deal with their pain and trauma. The hearings exposed the horrific human rights violations that had taken place in the `old South Africa' and highlighted the infinite psychological and emotional traumas that exist today among the many people who suffered in the country.
A great number of studies has documented the psychological and emotional consequences of exposure to traumatic situations. Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has been described in war veterans, rape victims, and holocaust and disaster survivors. According to D'Souza (1995),...