Sad tale of repatriation of 14 SA soldiers, with claims that bodies were not correctly preserved

Questions have been raised about the state of the remains of 14 South African soldiers who were recently brought back home from the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

This comes after the EFF’s Carl Niehaus alleged in the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans that some of the bodies were in a bad state because they were not correctly preserved.

The soldiers died three weeks ago in Goma, DRC.

However, retrieving their bodies was a logistical nightmare for the South African government.

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Long journey home for bodies of SA soldiers

Niehaus told The Citizen on Friday that the South African government had to get help from several African states for the bodies to be brought back home.

For days, South African parliamentarians had asked the Minister of Defence when the bodies would be returned.

“The bodies were transported to Rwanda by trucks, and they will never say that because they got help from [President Paul] Kagame’s government.

“They were then driven to Kampala [in Uganda]. But they were not properly preserved,” he claimed.

According to Niehaus, keeping the bodies preserved was a challenge when transporting them from one destination to another.

“While the bodies were delayed to be moved, there was no provision to maintain the bodies because the mortuary that was sent there was dysfunctional,” he said.

He claimed some of the bodies had to be identified through DNA tests.

‘At the mercy of M23 rebels’

Niehaus said another challenge for the South African government was to negotiate with the M23 rebels for the safe passage of the soldiers’ bodies.

“We are at the mercy of the M23 rebels. Our bases are surrounded by M23 rebels,” he said.

Niehaus still believes the South African government should pull out of the peacekeeping mission in Congo.

The Citizen had reached out to the South African National Defence (SANDF) on the state of the bodies of the dead soldiers.

However, it refused to comment on the matter, stating that it was insensitive.

Meanwhile, The Citizen reached out to a relative of one of the deceased soldiers, who told the paper that the body was “fine” but there were concerns about a missing organ.

Plea for sensitivity

Speaking at the repatriation ceremony of the 14 soldiers in Pretoria on Thursday night, the Chief of the SANDF General Rudzani Maphwanya said the 14 soldiers died to protect the stability of the region and to ensure peace in the DRC.

“They believed in the power of peace and the importance of their role in creating a safer world,” he said.

He lashed out at those who have criticised the South African Development Communities (SADC) mission in the DRC.

“As South Africans, we sometimes behave like we enjoy inflicting pain on ourselves. A nation in grief for their fallen heroes should not be throwing accusations and counter-accusations on the merits and demerits of our deployment,” he said.

He said South African troops in the DRC are well trained and are ready for war.

He said more information about the mission in the DRC will be revealed at a later stage.

“Bringing these issues is indeed insensitive and tantamount to rubbing salt on the wounds of our deceased,” he said.

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