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June 14, 2012

General Motors Paid Victims of South Africa's Apartheid Regime

General Motors has paid victims who charged that the automobile manufacturer produced parts for vehicles employed by South Africa's former apartheid government to raid homes and to track down and assassinate apartheid opponents.

GM, which is based in Detroit, paid $1.5 million in company stock to 25 South Africans who suffered torture, arrest and harassment at the hands of the regime, according to the Khulumani Support Group, which represented the victims in U.S. courts.

Although the automobile company paid a small amount, the victory is considered symbolic step toward a reparation package, said Shirley Gunn, director of the Human Rights Media Centre in South Africa, which is based in Cape Town.

"There will be tangible benefits," Gun told The Korea Herald newspaper. "Each claimant received a small sum of money and the rest will be used to push for compensation for other victims of apartheid."
The agreement was reached in late February.

Charles Abrahams, attorney for Khulumani Support Group, said the settlement is a step in the direction of corporate accountability.

In November 2002, Khulumani Support Group sued 23 firms for their alleged support of the apartheid regime. Most have settled, but not car manufacturers Ford and Daimler, the computer manufacturer, IBM, and a German defense contractor, Rheinmetall.

South Africa ended apartheid in 1994 with the election of Nelson Mandela as the country's first black president.

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