PRESS RELEASE
To: All Media
ATT: News Editors, Human Rights Reporters
For Immediate Release
12 June 2026
Judge Beshe finds that security classification of Cradock Four documents is unlawful and orders their disclosure
Statement by the Foundation for Human Rights
Today Judge Beshe granted an order sought by the families of the murdered Cradock Four activists against South Africa’s Acting Secretary of Defence, Dr Thobekile Gamede and the Department of Defence (DOD). The families had lodged a contempt of court application concerning the DOD’s failure to comply with a court order issued by the judge presiding over the inquest, Justice Beshe, to disclose key documents pertaining to the case.
Judge Beshe deemed the matter urgent and ordered the Secretary for the Department of Defence to unconditionally produce the documents in unredacted form in both electronic and hard copy format within 5 court days. Significantly, she also found that the security classification of the documents is unlawful and of no force and effect. Judge Beshe ordered that the first respondent, the Secretary for the Department of Defence, must show cause as to why they should not be held in contempt of court and why a sanction should not be imposed. Judge Beshe also awarded costs against the Department of Defence and the Secretary for the Department of Defence in favour of the Cradock Four families.
The families argued that the DOD willfully and intentionally refused to declassify the documents, in contravention of Justice Beshe’s court order, and that the ongoing classification of the documents was inexplicable in South Africa’s constitutional democracy. The documents in question were generated between 1982 and 1987 and are currently held by the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). Until today, they had remained classified under apartheid-era legislation enacted by the former South African Defence Force, an institution that systematically violated the rights of South Africans in service of an unjust regime.
Judge Beshe’s order marks the culmination of the families’ ongoing legal efforts to gain access to the documents, which began in 2021 when the first request was submitted. Rather than taking reasonable measures to declassify the documents, the Department of Defence had maintained that the documents remain classified due to reasons of national security. In April, the DOD made redacted versions of the documents accessible in a secure location under highly restrictive conditions which prohibited copying or sharing the documents, making it effectively impossible to use them in the inquest. It transpired at the court hearing today that the documents run to 3000 pages, rather than the 13,000 pages previously alleged. It also transpired in court that the redactions were so extensive that they completely covered 1,900 out of the 3,000 pages of disclosure which were sought, rendering the majority of the documents meaningless in their redacted form. Now the DOD must disclose the unredacted documents within the timeframe stipulated by the court, or they will risk being found in contempt of court.
Dorothy Calata, the daughter of murdered activist Fort Calata, who was one of the Cradock Four, made the following statement:
‘Listening to the court hearing, I had mixed emotions. When Judge Beshe’s order came, she gave us families hope that the truth will finally be heard by us as families and by this nation. This judgment says to us, the time for “Our truth” has come. We have renewed hope in Justice.’
Lukhanyo, Dorothy’s brother, commented that ‘It is sad that once again we had to resort to a legal judgment to help us access documents. However, the order shows that ultimately the court is helping us hold those who denied us truth and justice to account.’
As the next and possibly final sitting of the re-opened Cradock Four inquest approaches on 6 July 2026, accessing these documents will assist the families’ and the public to uncover the truth about the Cradock Four killings, 41 years later. The families’ heads of argument are available here.
Media Contacts:
Foundation for Human Rights: Jessie Waldman, jwaldman@fhr.org.za/ +27 78 644 8258
Cliffe Dekker Hoffmeyr: Luke Kleinsmidt, Luke.Kleinsmidt@cdhlegal.com/ +27 21 481 6385
Background:
The Cradock Four is a collective name given to Fort Calata, Matthew Goniwe, Sicelo Mhlauli, and Sparrow Mkonto, who were anti-apartheid activists abducted and murdered by members of the Security Branch on 27 June 1985. Two separate inquests, in 1987 and 1993, failed to do justice to the Cradock Four families by identifying the Security Branch officers involved in the abduction and murder. In 1999, eight former Security Branch officers applied for amnesty at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in relation to the Cradock Four case, but it was only granted for two, who had played a peripheral role.
In 2025, the third inquest into the Cradock Four was opened before the High Court (Eastern Cape Division, Gqeberha) as part of the families’ ongoing efforts to uncover the truth and secure accountability for the killings. The Cradock Four families are represented by Luke Kleinsmidt and Denzil Mhlongo of Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr Attorneys, Adv Howard Varney SC, and Adv Mohammad Zakaria Suleman.
The Cradock Four families are parties to constitutional damages litigation against the government, National Prosecuting Authority and South African Police Service. They are suing for the violation of their constitutional rights due to the delays and political interference in investigating and prosecuting the Cradock Four case, and other TRC cases. They also form part of the Calata group, which is participating in the Khampepe Commission of Inquiry looking into the suppression of TRC cases.
