The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) says it will offer its assistance to the 21 Enyobeni tavern victims’ families should they decide to take the responsible people for the incident to court.
This comes after the Eastern Cape Department of Health revealed this week that methanol, which is commonly found in cleaning products, was detected in the bodies of the deceased.
According to a report published by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), by-products of methanol metabolism cause an accumulation of acid in the blood, blindness and death.
SAHRC provincial manager, Dr Eileen Carter, said they are available to offer support to the bereaved families.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“We note the feedback from government stakeholders regarding the preliminary findings. We also note that the final analysis and cause of death remains outstanding.”[/perfectpullquote]
According to Dr Carter, SAHRC is conducting its own investigation.
“We are however continuing our own investigation and will await the outcomes from the forensic as well as the pathology teams in due course”, she said.
Parent of one of the victims, Sidwell Rangile, said his family is patiently waiting for the law to take its course.
Siyakhangela Ndevu, the owner of the Enyobeni tavern is expected to appear at the East London Magistrate’s court on 19 August 2022.
