Mbeki denies political interference to shield apartheid-era perpetrators [SOUND]

# Former president Thabo Mbeki has told the Khampepe Commission he approved several presidential pardon applications during his tenure. The commission investigates alleged political interference in Truth and Reconciliation Commission cases. Mbeki says he pardoned 33 prisoners, including ANC and PAC members convicted of serious crimes. Critics argued some pardons bypassed the TRC’s amnesty process. Mbeki responded to questions from ecidence leader Ishmael Semenya, denouncing claims of shielding apartheid-era perpetrators: