PRESIDENT Jacob Zuma has objected to a statement condemning the hanging of political prisoners but not the apartheid- era hangmen who did the executions.
This happened during the opening of the Pretoria Prison gallows museum on Friday. The museum was opened in honour of the 132 political prisoners hanged for fighting against apartheid.
While touring the museum Zuma, pictured, objected to the statement on the prison wall written by South African Council of Churches general secretary Reverend Mautji Pataki that reads: "Jesus Christ promises us abundant life; therefore, we cannot advocate death as the answer to mistakes people make each after the fall.
"We remain the agency for redemption but in this Chapel, men of God lost that sense of vocation and lent a hand to condemn people to death.
"We condemn their acts but not them."
A visibly annoyed Zuma asked national commissioner of correctional services Tom Moyane - who led the tour - what Reverend Pataki's statement meant.
"We condemn their acts but not them - what does this mean? What did the reverend mean by this?"
After a moment of deafening silence, Zuma broke the awkward silence by asking Moyane and his colleague, prison warder Andre Steyn, what was said by priests to the condemned prisoners' moments before they were hanged.
Steyn replied, "It was just a normal prayer and the services were kept short."
Zuma was also told by Moyane that on the eve of the hangings, prisoners would; "Laugh, make jokes, fantasise about getting married and speak the whole night".
Yesterday Pataki said he wished he had had an opportunity to explain his statement to the president.
"I saw how shocked the president was and I wished I could explain what I meant by that statement," Pataki said.
He said the statement was written two weeks ago in preparation for the unveiling of the museum.
"Obviously we condemn the acts of the people who killed our people, but we can't condemn them as human beings because that would mean that we are sending them to hell," Pataki said.
He said: "The people who killed still qualify for God's redemption.
"Priests who presided over these killing had forgotten their true duties, they lost God's direction - they forgot Jesus' ways and how they came to be what they were."
What did reverend mean? - President
PRESIDENT Jacob Zuma has objected to a statement condemning the hanging of political prisoners but not the apartheid- era hangmen who did the executions.
This happened during the opening of the Pretoria Prison gallows museum on Friday. The museum was opened in honour of the 132 political prisoners hanged for fighting against apartheid.
While touring the museum Zuma, pictured, objected to the statement on the prison wall written by South African Council of Churches general secretary Reverend Mautji Pataki that reads: "Jesus Christ promises us abundant life; therefore, we cannot advocate death as the answer to mistakes people make each after the fall.
"We remain the agency for redemption but in this Chapel, men of God lost that sense of vocation and lent a hand to condemn people to death.
"We condemn their acts but not them."
A visibly annoyed Zuma asked national commissioner of correctional services Tom Moyane - who led the tour - what Reverend Pataki's statement meant.
"We condemn their acts but not them - what does this mean? What did the reverend mean by this?"
After a moment of deafening silence, Zuma broke the awkward silence by asking Moyane and his colleague, prison warder Andre Steyn, what was said by priests to the condemned prisoners' moments before they were hanged.
Steyn replied, "It was just a normal prayer and the services were kept short."
Zuma was also told by Moyane that on the eve of the hangings, prisoners would; "Laugh, make jokes, fantasise about getting married and speak the whole night".
Yesterday Pataki said he wished he had had an opportunity to explain his statement to the president.
"I saw how shocked the president was and I wished I could explain what I meant by that statement," Pataki said.
He said the statement was written two weeks ago in preparation for the unveiling of the museum.
"Obviously we condemn the acts of the people who killed our people, but we can't condemn them as human beings because that would mean that we are sending them to hell," Pataki said.
He said: "The people who killed still qualify for God's redemption.
"Priests who presided over these killing had forgotten their true duties, they lost God's direction - they forgot Jesus' ways and how they came to be what they were."
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