(Editing this story was no easy task. It was a stomach-churning, gut-wrenching experience. The images you will see, should you continue to read this important story, may be traumatising to you. We took the decision to publish them, graphic as they are, because 28 March 1994 was a day of extreme violence and we feel it would be dishonest – and disrespectful to those who lost their lives – to present the story in a sanitised way. We apologise and share your horror. – Editor)
The Nugent Commission was set up to discover the truth, and Justice Robert Nugent declared that the IFP recounting was closer to reality, saying the ANC security contingent’s shooting was unjustified.
A year after the massacre, Nelson Mandela was heckled when he told Parliament that he had given the order to defend Shell House, and to “kill, if necessary”.
The Shell House Massacre was a stain on Nelson Mandela’s reputation, yet there appears to have been a lot more at play that day….
