'No First' By Tutu: A Summary

Unit One Analysis The state of social unrest in South Africa had been a major issue for generations, until the new South African government took control of the country from the previous regime. After many atrocities committed by the previous regime in the past, many in South African wanted to punish the guilty parties harshly as in the Nuernberg approach, or to adopt national amnesia which involves forgetting that the crimes entirely and continue on with their lives. While many other countries have taken this approach in the past, the archbishop of South Africa Desmond Tutu disagrees with both of these approaches to seek justice for the crimes committed by the previous regime, and instead offers his own alternative to seek justice. In “No
There were many acts of unforgivable violence committed by the previous ruling regime in South Africa, but Tutu gives a few example to show to the reader how violent and cruel these crimes actually were. One such act of violence Tutu describes is the Sharpeville massacre. Tutu says, “The Sharpeville massacre on March 21, 1960, a peaceful crowd demonstrated against the pass laws and sixty-nine people were mowed down when the police panicked and opened fired” (17). The Sharpeville massacre shows how the previous ruling regime of South Africa would end the lives of peaceful protesters just to keep the lower class and anyone who opposed them in check. An act of violence such as this was unfortunately a very common method used by the previous ruling regime to deal with uprisings by the lower class. This example that Tutu gives helps prove the necessity of the Truth and Regulation Commission, because it shows the reader that the people of South Africa can’t just forget about all of the crimes committed in the past. If South Africa were to adopt the national amnesia approach, the people of South Africa would forget the crimes that were committed in the past making it more likely that those very same mistakes will be repeated in the