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Latest Update
In February 2010, a federal district court judge in New York ruled in favour of the Khulumani Support Group, which is acting on behalf of victims of apartheid, allowing several of the group's claims against nine multinational corporations and banks to proceed. Khulumani is requesting compensation totalling several hundred billion dollars from businesses alleged to have assisted the apartheid government in perpetrating human rights abuses [VoA | 9 Feb 2010]. The case is now being decided in a second circuit court.
TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE PROCESSES
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South Africa: Khulumani Support Group class-action lawsuit
- Details
- Category: Mechanism
- Created on Thursday, 20 October 2011 20:12
- Last Updated on Wednesday, 14 December 2011 22:18
- Published on Wednesday, 30 November -0001 00:00
- Written by Super User
- Hits: 1456
NAME OF MECHANISM
Khulumani Support Group class-action lawsuit
PERIOD
2002 – present
RESOURCES
Khulumani Support Group website
RESULTS
In February 2010, a federal district court judge in New York ruled in favour of Khulumani Support Group, which is acting on behalf of victims of apartheid, allowing several of the group's claims against nine multinational corporations and banks to proceed. Khulumani is requesting compensation totalling several hundred billion dollars from businesses alleged to have assisted the apartheid government in perpetrating human rights abuses [VoA | 9 Feb 2010]. The case is now being decided in a second circuit court.
BACKGROUND
Following the conclusion of the TRC process, Khulumani filed a class-action lawsuit in the United States against a number of international businesses that operated in apartheid South Africa, arguing that the corporations provided arms and ammunition, transport, fuel and technology to the armed forces and that the banks provided the funds for these purchases, thereby enabling the state to commit human rights abuses.
In October 2007, the US Court of Appeals ruled that, under the Alien Tort Claims Act of 1789, the US has jurisdiction to hear the case brought by the Khulumani against 23 multinational companies it claims "aided and abetted" apartheid. Amongst the original companies were IBM, General Motors, RheinMetall Group and Barclays Bank.
The lawsuit was originally opposed by the US and South African governments. Former South African President Thabo Mbeki opposed the cases on grounds that they discouraged foreign investment. In 2009, President Jacob Zuma gave his support to the lawsuit [IOL | 3 Sep 2009], which had by then dropped the banks RheinMetall and Barclays from the list of companies. The remaining companies included Daimler AG, General Motors, Ford Motor Company and IBM. The corporations and banks have argued that their respective governments allowed business to be done with apartheid South Africa and that US courts have no jurisdiction in the case.
SOURCES
[Independent Online | 3 Sep 2009]
[Voice of America | 9 Feb 2010]