Open Secrets Newsletter | July/August 2024
As we step into Spring, let’s take a moment to reflect on the highlights of July and August. We celebrated Dulcie September’s remarkable life and honored Women’s Month through a Listening Cinema; we released our 2023/2024 Annual Report; and Open Secrets Radio has two new episodes. We are continuing our mission to expose corruption in every corner, from Zimbabwe’s Electoral Commision, to profiteers of the Rwandan genocide and the war in the DRC.
They Killed Dulcie Listening Cinema
In celebration of Women’s Month and what would have been Dulcie September’s 89th birthday, Open Secrets, in partnership with The Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation, hosted the They Killed Dulcie Listening Cinema on 22 August 2024. With nearly 80 people in attendance, the intimate engagement included listening session of They Killed Dulcie – a podcast series by Open Secrets and Sound Africa that explores the life and assassination of Dulcie September. This was followed by an insightful discussion between Kelly-Eve Koopman (writer and artivist) and Denise Newman (actress – Cold Case: Revisiting Dulcie September).
We were honoured to be joined by some of Dulcie’s family members, including Dulcie’s nephew, Michael Arendse, who shared some harrowing information on the investigation of Dulcie’s assassination in France. He also read a letter received from one of Dulcie’s close friends and comrades Jacqueline Dérens. Listen to the full podcast below.
Open Secrets Annual Report 2023-24
In 2023/24, the Open Secrets team bravely took on some of the biggest rogues in our midst. Our annual report reflects the achievements of the Open Secrets operations team, lawyers, campaigners, and investigators who work collaboratively to challenge the powerful.
“As this report reflects, we continue to go where it is hard. We also work hard to ensure that we act ethically…Above all, Open Secrets chooses sides—we are not here to fan the flames of injustice but to help work with others in fighting the fires that can and must be stopped.” – The Open Secrets Board, 2024.
Open Secrets Radio is back with two new episodes!
In this episode, host Mamello Mosiana dives deep into Zimbabwe’s latest corruption scandal involving the Zimbabwean Electoral Commission (ZEC) centred around an alleged over-inflated tender by South African printing firm, Renform and the politically connected businessman Wicknell Chivayo.
In this episode, host Nolwazi Nene speaks to investigators Abby May, Zen Mathe, and Michael Marchant about the potential profiteers of a Universal Basic Income Grant (UBIG) and breaks down who stands to profit.
How well do you know your neighbours?
In July, Open Secrets was on the front page of Issue 167 of The Continent, exposing suspected war criminal Cristoph Huber who is allegedly living large in the picturesque seaside town of Somerset West in Cape Town, despite being accused of pillaging (a war crime) from the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) during the Second Congo War. Despite his elusive presence, the investigation by Open Secrets confirmed Huber’s residence in South Africa, and evidence suggests that the proceeds of Huber’s “business” in the DRC may have been used to purchase millions of Rands of property in South Africa.
We also stayed hot on the heels of another suspected war criminal residing in South Africa. In this eye-opening video, Open Secrets shows the shocking role of Willem ‘Ters’ Ehlers in arming the Rwandan Genocide. This followed our memorandum to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) being submitted in June 2024, in which we urged for the prosecution of Ehlers for aiding and abetting the Rwandan Genocide. Read more here.
Disseminating complex information on apartheid histories, GNU Roundtable, and State Capture and Beyond
On the 18th July, Open Secrets Campaigner Letlhogonolo Letshele spoke at a conference commemorating the 30th Anniversary of South Africa’s Transition to Democracy hosted by the African Centre for Transnational Criminal Justice and the Foundation for Human Rights at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). The panel focused on civil society initiatives in promoting memory and education about Apartheid-era violations and touched on the ways in which Open Secrets disseminates complex information on apartheid histories, referencing, among other works Apartheid, Guns and Money, the 2018 People’s Tribunal on Economic Crime, and podcast series ‘They Killed Dulcie’.
On the 22nd of August, Abby May, Investigator at Open Secrets was part of the Government of National Unity Youth Roundtable 2024 organised by the Institute of Justice and Reconciliation to discuss how young people envision the Government of National Unity.
“Walking out of the Institute of Justice and Reconciliation’s Youth GNU roundtable left me with a feeling of restrained anticipation. Many young people in the country don’t believe there even is a Government of National Unity. Regardless, they’re brimming with the energy to ensure that the economic and social promises made by GNU politicians in their 2024 election campaigns are fully met”. – Abby May
On the 29th of August, Open Secrets was invited to the Legal Resource Centre’s State Capture and Beyond discussion, exploring the role of civil society and grassroots movements in ensuring accountability for state capture and public procurement corruption. Qiqa Nkomo and Michael Marchant presented on Open Secrets’ legal approach to state capture matters such as PRASA, and illuminated private sector enablers such as banks and consulting companies that have facilitated state capture in South Africa.
Where The (Mine)y Resides with Zen Mathe and Michael Marchant
Open Secrets investigators Zen Mathe and Michael Marchant were featured in episode 9 of the African Climate Alliance’s podcast where they discussed the power and money dynamics within South Africa’s energy landscape, as well as the lessons that can be learned for achieving an equitable and just energy transition.
Coming Soon!
A new edition of our Corporations and Economic Crime Report (CECR) is launching on 26th September 2024 – CECR: Volume IV – The Oil and Gas Majors
The Corporations and Economic Crime Report (CECR) is a publication series that explores the most egregious cases of economic crimes and corruption by private financial institutions. In doing so, we aim to highlight the key themes that link corporate criminality across these periods of time, focusing on the role of the private sector, a critical blind spot in the discourse around economic crime.
In The Media
- Watch | ‘Suspicious that Simelane can’t provide loan documents’
- Listen | Justice Minister must act swiftly in face of VBS loan allegations
- Newzroom Afrika|Open Secrets petitions NPA to prosecute man for allegedly aiding Rwandan genocide
- Eyewitness News | NPA petitioned to probe ex-apartheid govt official for role in Rwandan genocide
- defenceWeb | Will Rwandan genocide come back to haunt PW Botha man?
- MSN News | Open Secrets probe links SANDF to assassination of Hawks investigator
Stay tuned and engaged as we move forward with these important initiatives! Subscribe to Open Secrets TV and tune into Open Secrets Radio.
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