Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission – Hearing Number 262 Ex-resistance member Pierre Morel shares his experience with TRNUC |04 March 2022

Pierre Morel was the first person to appear in open session of the Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission (TRNUC) yesterday, as a general witness, giving an account of his involvement in the resistance movement.

Mr Morel began his testimony with his days on Marie-Louise Island where he became close to Albert Rene, despite being secretly involved with counter-coup plan being initiated at that time in South Africa.

He explained that based on what he observed on the island, Rene had already been informed about the coup and that he offered him R500,000 to assassinate Gerard Hoarau, who at one point was living in his home in Pretoria, in South Africa.

Mr Morel said Albert Rene told him that Mario Ricci warned him not to release Mr Hoarau from detention and that now he was creating a lot trouble for him.

He told the commission that on one particular occasion, Mr Hoarau who was living in England, asked him to get in contact with Vic Tirant – an ex-army officer – who according to him was not really supporting the regime.

Mr Morel explained that this was only a bait set by Rene to lure in Mr Hoarau.

He said after he had met with Mr Tirant, an unknown soldier informed someone working at the bank that there was an attempt on his (Morel’s) life.

On another occasion on Marie-Louise, Mr Morel said he pretended to have a headache, just to see the reaction of Rene who instantly offered him a pill, which he refused.

Following the failed counter-coup in 1981, Mr Morel said he personally was preparing another attack, but after getting a hint of a possible leak, he decided to abort the mission.

Out of desperation to overthrow the regime in place, Mr Morel told the commission that he looked for help everywhere to raise funds, and even sought for the help of Eugène Ney Terre Blanche, the Afrikaner nationalist and white supremacist who founded and led the Afrikaner Resistance Movement.

Roland Duval