Minister must explain why no action has been taken against soldiers in brutal video on social media

10 January 2023

The Minister of Defence, Thandi Modise, must provide answers as to why no action has been taken against soldiers of the South African Defence Force who may possibly have committed a war crime in Mozambique.

A brutal video currently doing the rounds on social media clearly shows South African soldiers being present while corpses are piled up on a burning heap.

The soldiers are clearly recognisable due to their South African Defence Force uniform depicting the country's flag.

According to a media statement issued by the Defence Force, the incident could have transpired in November 2022 in Mozambique, where South African soldiers have been deployed.

The statement adds that the identities of the soldiers are "unknown" and that the incident will be investigated.

The Minister must find out why the incident, which reportedly transpired months ago already, has only come to the Defence Force's attention now after it has been widely shared on social media.

Everything seems to point to the incident being a violation of the Geneva Conventions, which makes it a war crime.

Therefore, government and the Defence Force must be swift to act against the relevant soldiers to demonstrate to the international community that it is serious about addressing the matter.

South African soldiers have been part of the Southern African Development Community's intervention force in Cabo Delgado in Mozambique for years.

Initially, about 1 495 soldiers would have been deployed, but according to the media, only 500 had been deployed by April last year.

The soldiers' deployment in Mozambique cost South African taxpayers R2,8 billion for just last year.

Issued by Pieter Groenewald, FF Plus leader, 10 January 2023