Transvaal-Arctica

[Vedran]

The bodies were loaded into the trailers. A tarp was then secured onto each trailer. With all of the soldiers, medics, and natives on the jeeps, they drove back to town and into the small compound within the city that the Arcticans had taken as their headquarters.

Driving into the parking area, the soldiers got off their jeeps and then split into two groups. The reinforcement platoon and the medics began unloading the bodies and taking them to one of the unused buildings in the compound for temporary storage. The Arcticans planned to discover the identities of the deceased and find those responsible for the executions, but the infirmary in the headquarters was ill-equipped to do things such as make dental molds or DNA tests, and taking the bodies to a hospital or morgue in the city would alert the Transvalers. The next logical step was to secure the native village who had found the site from reprisals.

The second group, then, consisting of the original detachment led by Lt. Malahelo, escorted the civilians back to Broussard's office.

A guard opened the door for them and the soldiers saluted Broussard.

"Welcome back, men. Lt. Malahelo, the message from your man was brief. Make me aware of the details."

Malahelo expanded on Pvt. Engelman's brief message, telling Broussard the details of their discovery. "All of this will be included in my report, sir."

"Good. Now, before continuing this investigation, I must ensure the safety of these people and their families," said Lt. Col. Broussard, gesturing to the villagers. He looked at a translator. "Ask them where their village is, and what contact they have had with the Transvalers before...and what we can do to keep them safe from reprisals that may come after we inform the Transvalers of our discovery."

[Botha]

"Ask them where their village is, and what contact they have had with the Transvalers before...and what we can do to keep them safe from reprisals that may come after we inform the Transvalers of our discovery."

The translator and the villagers talked back and forth for around five minutes, before the translator turned to Lieutenant Colonel Broussard.

“Their village is around thirty kilometers northwards from here, around two-thirds the way between here and Memba, the next town along the coast. Their village has no name. But they also say they don’t want you to tell the Transvalers that they found the site. They don’t want to get involved any further. The only contact they have had with the Transvalers in the last couple of months was with one the periodic patrols by the frontier troops. They saw a group a few days ago but stayed inside when they passed near their village.”

[Vedran]

"I was not planning on telling the Transvalers about it. I will tell them that a group of soldiers found the site while driving through the forest. It is still true.

The issue here is the likelihood that whoever was responsible for the executions will connect the discovery of the site to these people's village. I cannot allow that to happen, as it is my job to protect the denizens of this region. From anyone."

[Botha]

The translator relayed back to Broussard that “the villagers would rather stay in Nacala for the time being, for their own safety. They don’t trust the frontier patrols and fear if they return to their village they will get attacked there.”

A few hours later, a member of Arctica’s military medic corps showed up at Broussard’s command office. After waiting to see the lieutenant colonel, he was ushered in to meet Broussard.

“Sir, I checked over that body of the woman who looked to be the most recent victim. Strange as it may sound, I believe she was already dead before she was shot. From my examination, the entry wound and shards from her skull seem to have occurred after surface decomposition had begun. And comparing the various states of the other bodies, it is my guess that these people were killed at different times and all dumped at the site at once. It would seem unusual that such an isolated, out of the way place would be used as a frequent dumping ground over such an extended period of time.”

“Also, another clue, one of the oldest bodies, well… more just a skeleton, had traces of dirt composure quite different than the soil found at the site… as if the bones were dug up from somewhere else, and brought there to be dumped.”

“I was able to recover a couple of bullets as well”, which the medic then handed over to Broussard. “They measure 7.9 mm in diameter, too large for the standard FN FAL rifle which which the Krygsmagte employs, which is 7.8 mm. However, it does match exactly the same calibre as a 303 Lee-Enfield - which is very popular amongst Transvaler farmers and hunters.”

Edited December 8, 2009 by Botha

[Vedran]

The translator relayed back to Broussard that “the villagers would rather stay in Nacala for the time being, for their own safety. They don’t trust the frontier patrols and fear if they return to their village they will get attacked there.”

"Very well. Ask them whether they want to stay in the compound or go into the city. And...thank them for their help in locating the site."

Once the civilians had left, Broussard dismissed the three Privates, leaving only himself and Lt. Malahelo in the office. The Lieutenant stood for some time while Broussard wrote down orders, and handed him two pieces of paper.

"Lieutenant, take these to my XO." The Lieutenant did so. One paper was an order for a squad of scouts to be sent to the gate to the execution site, to hide in the brush and watch for anyone approaching. Anyone who attempted to enter the area was to be apprehended and returned to the base for interrogation.

The second paper contained orders for another squad to make their way to the informants' village, to check up on it and to stay there for the next few days to make sure nothing happened to it.

A few hours later, a member of Arctica’s military medic corps showed up at Broussard’s command office. After waiting to see the lieutenant colonel, he was ushered in to meet Broussard.

“Sir, I checked over that body of the woman who looked to be the most recent victim. Strange as it may sound, I believe she was already dead before she was shot. From my examination, the entry wound and shards from her skull seem to have occurred after surface decomposition had begun. And comparing the various states of the other bodies, it is my guess that these people were killed at different times and all dumped at the site at once. It would seem unusual that such an isolated, out of the way place would be used as a frequent dumping ground over such an extended period of time.”

“Also, another clue, one of the oldest bodies, well… more just a skeleton, had traces of dirt composure quite different than the soil found at the site… as if the bones were dug up from somewhere else, and brought there to be dumped.”

“I was able to recover a couple of bullets as well”, which the medic then handed over to Broussard. “They measure 7.9 mm in diameter, too large for the standard FN FAL rifle which which the Krygsmagte employs, which is 7.8 mm. However, it does match exactly the same calibre as a 303 Lee-Enfield - which is very popular amongst Transvaler farmers and hunters.”

Broussard held the bullets in his hand while listening to the medic.

"So it seems like when the site was closed by the government in February it was really abandoned by them. What we may be looking at here is vigilante groups...that's good in that we won't have the issues we might have in confronting the perpetrators as we would if the government was doing it." Broussard handed the bullets back to the medic.

"Put these in an evidence bag. You are dismissed."

After the medic left, Broussard left his office and approached one of the radio operators. He told him to contact the base at Quelimane, where the overall headquarters of the Arctica-Transvaal Defense Force was located, and where the ATDF's commanding officer, General Ružinić, was located.

At Broussard's instruction, the radio operator informed Quelimane of all the events of the past few days, and requested a boat to come retrieve the corpses, where they could be taken to the base at Quelimane and with the better medical facilities there, dental molds and DNA tests could be performed, taking the first step into the actual investigation.

Soon, Ružinić was informed. He ordered a boat sent out to collect the evidence, and his reports to higher-ups in the mainland caught the attention of Arctica Information Command, the intelligence service.

While the boat was en route, AIC contacted some of its spies still operating in Transvaal, the ones closest to Mozambique or in southern Mozambique, asking them if they had heard of similar happenings or of any racial violence by Boers.

Additionally, AIC sent two agents to Nacela to pose as adventurous young Arcticans seeking a new life in the joint territory. Neither of them were very experienced, and for both of them, it was their first mission.

(EDIT) Broussard summoned to his office the Sergeant that had greeted the Transvaler frontier guards. "Sergeant, do you remember what those frontier guards were armed with?"

Edited December 8, 2009 by Vedran

[Botha]

While the boat was en route, AIC contacted some of its spies still operating in Transvaal, the ones closest to Mozambique or in southern Mozambique, asking them if they had heard of similar happenings or of any racial violence by Boers.

After a few days, AIC would report back to Broussard that none of the AIC agents were able to locate any previous examples of such violence by the Boers - or anyone for that matter.

In fact, one of the agents had the audacity (and gallows humour) to say that the last known instance he could find of a mass execution like this "...was when Annetjie van Matteus had the entire SWF-LSF soccer team shot over two years ago."

However, one intrepid and resourceful AIC agent who shuttled between Maputo and Pretoria on a regular basis under a 'business cover' as a tea exporter was able to locate and access some of the government files for the "Nacala Penal Labour Colony for Sexual Deviants" (he maintains an affair with one of the clerks who handles visitor access to the restricted portion of the archives). He wants to know "if you want the files (he simply walked off with the originals) forwarded to you?"

Broussard summoned to his office the Sergeant that had greeted the Transvaler frontier guards. "Sergeant, do you remember what those frontier guards were armed with?"

"I believe they were FN FALs but not one-hundred percent sure, but I don't think they were Lee-Enfields, that kind of antiquated rifle would have caught my attention."

Edited December 9, 2009 by Botha

[Vedran]

After a few days, AIC would report back to Broussard that none of the AIC agents were able to locate any previous examples of such violence by the Boers - or anyone for that matter.

In fact, one of the agents had the audacity (and gallows humour) to say that the last known instance he could find of a mass execution like this "...was when Annetjie van Matteus had the entire SWF-LSF soccer team shot over two years ago."

However, one intrepid and resourceful AIC agent who shuttled between Maputo and Pretoria on a regular basis under a 'business cover' as a tea exporter was able to locate and access some of the government files for the "Nacala Penal Labour Colony for Sexual Deviants" (he maintains an affair with one of the clerks who handles visitor access to the restricted portion of the archives). He wants to know "if you want the files (he simply walked off with the originals) forwarded to you?"

"Yes, make copies and fax them to me," instructed the man's handler.

"I believe they were FN FALs but not one-hundred percent sure, but I don't think they were Lee-Enfields, that kind of antiquated rifle would have caught my attention."

"Very well, Sergeant.

There is one more thing. I believe some family friends of mine are arriving by boat soon. They want to try life in Arctica-Transvaal...bring them to my office."

When the two spies arrived (posing as a couple) they sat down silently. One of them spoke up immediately. "AIC has sent us to investigate your issue. We've been briefed on the developments so far. If we discover anything, you will be made aware. We will report to Info Command regularly, who will inform you. If that is not a possibility, we will report to you and it will be your duty to relay the information to our handler immediately.

None of your men are to be made aware of our identity or mission, do you understand?"

Broussard shifted in his seat, his face hardening. He wasn't used to being talked down to by AICers, but he knew that unless they interfered with his mandate, he would have to keep his mouth shut. He simply nodded stiffly in reply.

He got a cold smile in return. "Good," said the other agent, obviously enjoying the degree of power her profession gave her. Both then stood and walked out, their demeanor changing as soon as they were out of the door. They were now the curious, adventurous young couple out to make something of themselves in a new land.

Meanwhile in Quelimane the boat had arrived, and had been swarmed by medical personnel who wanted to work on the corpses right away. Dental impressions were made, fingerprints taken from the not-quite-decomposed samples, a dirt sample had been taken from the anomalous skeleton and research was done on which areas that type of soil composition could be present, the lengthy process of DNA profiling was underway, and proper autopsies were performed for the first time. In several weeks the the DNA results would come back, and then the Transvaal government could be contacted to aid in the investigation, with all pertinent data already available for them to check against their records.

Just in case any of the dead had traveled to Arctica and been arrested there at any point, the available fingerprints were run through the police computer.

Until then, Broussard's scouts, the two agents, and the official records provided by the other operative were the Arcticans' only way of uncovering this mystery.

[Botha]

Lieutenant-Colonel Broussard sat at his desk going through the contests of the rather thick folder which had been couriered to him from Pretoria via Maputo and Oceana.

Broussard smiled to himself, a silent chuckle of a salute for the agent who had the audacity to walk right into the Transvaler national archives unchallenged and subsequently walk out with all the original files and arousing no suspicion. For all the regional belligerence and supremacy the Transvalers sometimes tried to present to the world, they were certainly not one of the smartest nor alert when it came to their own internal security at times.

What were now strewn about on his desk were the official prisoner records for the Nacala Penal Labour Colony for Sexual Deviants.

What struck Broussard as unusual was that during the camp’s entire operational period between completion on June 5, 2008 and its closure on February 26, 2009, prior to the first failed attempt at Mozambican independence, it only ever contained three prisoners.

Three prisoners. Broussard was amazed that the Transvaler government would go to all that effort to build and maintain such an operation for three unfortunate people who happened to be imprisoned solely for their sexual orientation. They spent a fortune on nothing. He laughed to himself; not only were the Boers terrible policemen but they were incredibly wasteful as well.

If the documentation was indeed true, and all evidence seemed to indicate that it was genuine, then it was likely that the bodies found were not linked with the operations of the camp.

He then noticed a signature on some memos which sent a chill down his spine. Many of the initial directives and government orders relating to the construction and operation of labour camps which emanated from Pretoria had the signature of then-Interior Minister Annetjie van Matteus. He wondered to himself about the whole the macabre irony of Van Matteus ultimately responsible for managing something that she herself could have been imprisoned in, if all the quiet rumours and whisperings about her sexuality were indeed true.

Broussard then noted attached reports which contained the names and whereabouts of the three ‘sexual deviants’ of Nacala forced labour camp; even after their release the Transvaler government maintained tabs on their movements. Two men and one woman. One of the men had left the country permanently for an unknown destination while the woman had been killed during enemy bombing in the Karma War. That left one Piet van der Merwe – currently a resident of Cape Town – as the only traceable, former prisoner.

Also included was what looked like the damage control report from Pretoria in the wake of the Tahoe-Arctican investigations into Transvaal’s forced labour system. Broussard cracked another wide smile. He felt proud, that for once, here was indeed physical proof that his homeland had done something that happened to strike some real fear and uncertainty into the Boers.

Lastly, there was the formal notice of closure issued by Interior Minister Gert Boersma, van Matteus’ replacement. That name he recognized, as Boersma had taken up exile in Arctica when the Malan dictatorship was in full swing. And the last that he recalled hearing through Arctican media reports from that period, Boersma still maintained a private residence in Arctica.

Broussard gathered all the papers and put them back into the manila envelope. They would be photocopied and then the originals returned to Oceana to be taken back to the archive before any one from the Transvaler government had noticed they were missing. It would take some time before any forensic evidence would be made available, but at least for the time being he had some leads which he could follow in the meanwhile.

[Vedran]

After reading the documents, Broussard realized that he would just have to be patient while the Infos followed the leads. He quickly sent the items back to Oceana so that it could be returned before whatever daring agent who retrieved it got compromised.

There were two groups of Arctican spies in Transvaal, having been sent in two waves. The first group was originally sent in late April to plant themselves in the SNP created by "Karl van Zyl." The planned size of the group was three agents, but Transvaal broke into war and any threat Van Zyl posed was neutralized, so only two were sent.

The second group was a larger wave sent in when Transvaal was focusing all its resources on the war. Arctica saw the opportunity and decided to infiltrate a few more into the country if a problem like Van Zyl should arise again. Until such time that action would need to be taken to protect Arctica, they served a passive information-gathering role.

However, in the next step of the investigation, an agent from the first group would be used. Codenamed Cheetah, the operative had taken on the name Xandra Hoffman before entering Cape Town on a ship, April 22. Claiming to have lived in Namibia for some time, she soon acquired Transvaler citizenship and got a clerical job with the National Party headquarters in the city. She voted regularly but otherwise kept quiet. Her role within AIC mostly required keeping watch for any important documents passed her way. Other than that, she basically lived her life as any other middle-class Transvaler. There had been no important things she needed to pass onto AIC, and so her espionage mission seemed more like a witness relocation program until she was contacted by her handler. The message stated that there was something she needed to do, and described what that was.

Xandra, who was so used to her new life and devoid of contact with her countrymen that she might not have responded to her birth name anymore, didn't know whether to be excited or to dread this break from her routine. But she quickly reminded herself that despite appearances she was still an AIC operative, or colloquially "Info."

Included in the message was Piet van der Merwe's home address. Posing as some sort of humanitarian worker wouldn't be very difficult, since she wasn't well-known at all and was just another face in the crowd.

So that is what she did. One afternoon, posing as a member of a fictional humanitarian organization within Transvaal (which was, of course, operating in secret, which might deter him from asking questions or probing her identity further), she approached the subject at his home under a second false name, told him who she "was," reassured him she was not a journalist, and began asking questions about him, and eventually the camp, trying to ease into the subject, taking notes as she did this.

---------

AIC left the task of contacting Boersma to the military, since they were the only ones "officially" involved in the investigation, even though the investigation was still not actually official.

After extending the courtesy of calling Boersma to arrange a meeting before visiting him, a Major Andrew Wilhelm of the Arctica-Transvaal Defense Force, wearing his dark blue dress uniform which by regulation matched the hue of the background of Arctica's old flag (OOC: I don't have it right now but if I find it I will edit in the link).

"Good afternoon, Mr. Boersma," he said, taking off his hat and extending his hand to shake, and introduced himself.

"I apologize for meeting you on such short notice, but there is a matter that the ATDF requires your input on...if we may speak inside?"

Once inside, the Major told Boersma that some of the soldiers from Nacala had been led to the remains of the prison camp by the natives, and told him what Broussard's men had found there. He told him what he knew of the investigation - everything minus the espionage involved, which Wilhelm was not even aware of - and that, as Minister of the Interior at the time the camp was in operation and when it was closed (or so the natives told them), Boersma may hold relevant knowledge.

"The ATDF would be grateful if you could aid in this investigation in any way."

[Botha]

Piet van der Merwe answered his door reluctantly. He no longer trusted strangers.

“Hello?” he said, peering through the opening of the latched door.

Seeing it was a lone woman standing there, and not a group of military thugs like the time before, he unlatched the chain (which probably would not keep anyone out anyways) and beckoned her to come inside. As he closed the door, he hesitantly looked around one last time, wary that he was being watched.

Van der Merwe made some coffee for his visitor and then sat down to answer the various questions she asked. He sensed that she was not whom she claimed to be, and when discussion began to focus around his time in the detention camp, as he referred to it, he knew why she was here – to find out about the nature of the camp – although still not sure who had sent her.

But he felt that whoever she was working for (he assumed a foreign magazine journalist trying to expose some dirt on the government), she was probably not going to report him to the Interior Ministry.

“Yes, I was arrested I think in July 2008, I don’t recall the exact date for sure, but the camp in Nacala where I was sent was fairly new. There was another man there, then around a month later a woman joined us. We were kept there until the end of February, when the camp was closed and we were released.”

“What else would you like to know?”

Gert Boersma, former Minister of Interior

Gert Boersma, a rather short pudgy balding man, sat back in his chair as he recollected:

“Yes, I recall those labour camps were quite an embarrassment for many in Pretoria once their existence came out in the open. Once I replaced Van Matteus as the Interior Minister, I tried to do my best to divert as much attention as possible away from them, so our more zealous types working for me in the Ministry would hopefully ‘forget’ about them and thus prosecuting the very people who were supposed to end up in them.”

“Of course, I had to keep them filled with some prisoners, as the government would have begun questioning why the labour camp system had no inmates at all - but when they did ask me why our inmate population was lower than expected; I just replied that perhaps they overestimated their target expectations of prisoners. I also lied and said that most of the people we “arrested” for deviant behavior or unapproved religious beliefs also had committed felonies, so we just put them in our general prison system and quietly released them. I feel sorry however for the souls that I had to send to Mozambique to maintain the front of operating the camps.”

“I can verify – by my word – that all the prisoners assigned to Nacala were later released. I can also verify that as far as I am aware, no executions were ever carried out. Granted our security apparatus may utilize brute force or use ‘intensive investigation’ techniques during interrogations at times to maintain its reputation of fear, but I never heard of anyone deliberately killed in such a manner as you unearthed at Nacala.”

“If you ask me, I think your people in Nacala were purposely led there so you would discover those bodies. Most black Africans, and certainly those in the hinterlands of the Republic, want nothing to do with any government authority out of mistrust or fear. There must have been a reason why those locals contacted your people, either out of fear of something far greater than the government – or they were paid to do so. The situation seems just too convenient to occur under ‘normal circumstances’.”

“Also, consider this: when we evaculated that territory in February 2009 for the abortive attempt at Mozambican independence, I received orders from Pretoria to level the camps in the areas we were turning over to the new independence governments, so they would not find any evidence of them and thus expose our operation to outside, prying foreign eyes. So one would think that if this crime were carried out by government or camp personal, the first thing they would do is remove any bodies of deceased prisoners, ja?”

Edited December 13, 2009 by Botha

[Vedran]

Piet van der Merwe answered his door reluctantly. He no longer trusted strangers.

“Hello?” he said, peering through the opening of the latched door.

Seeing it was a lone woman standing there, and not a group of military thugs like the time before, he unlatched the chain (which probably would not keep anyone out anyways) and beckoned her to come inside. As he closed the door, he hesitantly looked around one last time, wary that he was being watched.

Van der Merwe made some coffee for his visitor and then sat down to answer the various questions she asked. He sensed that she was not whom she claimed to be, and when discussion began to focus around his time in the detention camp, as he referred to it, he knew why she was here – to find out about the nature of the camp – although still not sure who had sent her.

But he felt that whoever she was working for (he assumed a foreign magazine journalist trying to expose some dirt on the government), she was probably not going to report him to the Interior Ministry.

“Yes, I was arrested I think in July 2008, I don’t recall the exact date for sure, but the camp in Nacala where I was sent was fairly new. There was another man there, then around a month later a woman joined us. We were kept there until the end of February, when the camp was closed and we were released.”

“What else would you like to know?”

She started out with asking him questions he expected, about the conditions in the camp, how often they were fed, what life was like after he was released, things like that.

Then, "Was there anything strange about the camp, something you would not expect to be there? Maybe the guards behaving erratically, any threats from the locals, strange visitors coming and going?"

"So one would think that if this crime were carried out by government or camp personal, the first thing they would do is remove any bodies of deceased prisoners, ja?”

"Yes, the oldest of the bodies is estimated to have died after the camp was closed. A dirt sample was also taken from another skeleton that does not match the soil in which it was buried. Your theory that the natives deliberately led us there does add more mystery to the investigation. It leads me to believe that the usage of Lee-Enfield rifles was also meant to mislead us, meaning that old boers or Verwoerd Front supporters are probably not the perpetrators. Organized crime maybe?

Anyway, I thank you for your help, Mr. Boersma. If any further information comes to mind, please contact the Arctica-Transvaal Defense Force headquarters in Quelimane." Wilhelm wrote down a number on a piece of paper and handed it to Boersma."

As he was leaving, Wilhelm could not help but to think Van Matteus was somehow connected to the murders. She was Interior Minister for a time, after all. Perhaps it was his morbid sense of humor that connected the rumors of Van Matteus' sexual orientation to the post-mortem gunshot wound on the newest corpse, the woman. Maybe she didn't like her girlfriend's new hair color, he thought to himself, grinning as he walked back to his car.

[Botha]

Piet van der Merwe thought carefully back to those days he spent in the camp.

“Anything strange, you ask? Well the whole set-up seemed strange – like a farcical stage-play. It was like the camp operated as if there were supposed to be hundreds imprisoned. We would go through the motions of having roll call three times a day even though there were only three of us there and it was impossible for the guards and officers not to know our whereabouts the whole time. There were probably a dozen barracks to house prisoners – although all were empty except the one we occupied. We put up blankets to divide it so there was some privacy between the three of us. Most of the time they just left us alone.”

As she spoke with Van der Merwe, Xandra Hoffman suspected that his outgoing personality probably made him a noticeable target for the authorities’ attention, someone who simply did not blend into the rest of the generally conservative and staid white society.

“We were always treated firmly but respectful, no one ever beat or tortured us, if that is what you are wondering, despite the frequent rumoured practices of Interior Ministry security personal. I believe we actually had regular army troops assigned as our guards, and I got the impression we were a punishment or disciplinary posting for the army. All in all it was fairly quiet – we never saw any visitors from the outside world. As for locals, from what I heard they simply stayed away.”

Then Van der Merwe asked pensively, “excuse me, but why are you asking these questions?”

= = =

Boersma listened to what the Arcticans told him about the nature of their discoveries and the evidence so far collected before giving his assessment:

“Organised crime? No… highly unlikely! The government has always maintained a strong arm on organized crime and stamped it out at every opportunity possible. What little organised crime that has occurred over the years is almost always based in the South Western Townships near Johannesburg, better known as Soweto. Northern Mozambique is some of the most remote parts of the Republic, that’s basically why we built the camps there – because no one is around and nothing goes on.”

“I also doubt this act was perpetrated by natives or blacks, as the government takes a very dim view on arming Africans. Generally the only Africans, and I mean here blacks, who would have access to firearms would be soldiers – and all of Transvaal’s black troops are usually stationed in Namibia or Botswana.”

“If it were local populace, then the weaponry – assuming they even had access to a secret cache of weapons - would most likely be different ordinance… foreign-supplied… like AK-47s or something ex-guerillas might have stored away. But Mozambique has generally not been a scene of native rebellion or resistance.”

“If you are suspecting the use of Lee-Enfields, then that there tells me the perpetrators were almost for sure whites. It’s a popular weapon amongst rural white civilians and ex-military. I myself would actually lean towards some sort of secret Boer group. Perhaps ex-Verwoerd Front although they have pretty much disbanded since the death of Reverend Du Toit and the Karma War finished many of them off too. But those that survived, such as that queer Karl Van Zyl fellow who was briefly my replacement, the military junta didn’t keep any tabs on them. From what I heard through my sources remaining inside the Interior Ministry while I was in exile, apparently Malan and his cohorts had more important things to focus on than a bunch of redneck farmers and bitterender racists.”

As he listened to the affable Boersma, Wilhelm found it incredible to believe that his guest had somehow rose to the position of Interior Minister in a nation that many called 'closet fascists' and didn't always have the best track record for human rights.

Then as Boersma stood up to leave, he asked: “Have you spoken to anyone in the Transvaler government about this yet?”

Edited December 18, 2009 by Botha

[Vedran]

Then Van der Merwe asked pensively, “excuse me, but why are you asking these questions?”

"My organization is concerned with human rights...if you were tortured or abused in any way, I'd want to know that, naturally, and my organization may pass some information to people who could expose that.

And the rights of the prisoners aren't the only things we're concerned about, Transvaal has had a pretty bad record of treating the blacks too. So if the natives around your camp were making threats, that indicates dissent and of course there must be a reason for that."

Hoffman placed her notes into her purse. "Well, Mr. Van der Merwe...thanks for your help. I should get going before it gets dark. Good luck to you."

Then as Boersma stood up to leave, he asked: “Have you spoken to anyone in the Transvaler government about this yet?”

"No, we are waiting on DNA results to come back from the corpses. All other possible forensic evidence has been required, and we've been chasing leads while we wait for the results. So far you're our only lead, since you were Interior Minister for quite some time.

And, I think that Broussard does not want to bring this issue to the attention of your government until he has prepared all of the evidence. It's been several days, they should be coming in soon."

Wilhelm considered the possibility of Van Zyl being involved in the killings. It would make sense: Van Zyl was last known to have taken asylum in Serca, and the Serca-Transvaal border in Mozambique was very lightly patrolled. Hopefully with the DNA results some light could be shed on who these people were and why they were targeted, and by whom.

[Botha]

"And the rights of the prisoners aren't the only things we're concerned about, Transvaal has had a pretty bad record of treating the blacks too. So if the natives around your camp were making threats, that indicates dissent and of course there must be a reason for that."

Van der Merwe looked somewhat perplexed when Xandra Hoffman spoke of Transvaal’s treatment of blacks. Unbeknownst to her, it was part of the cruel irony that often appears in stratified, discriminatory societies, where the oppressed in one social strata nevertheless look down or fail to acknowledge the oppression of those ‘beneath’ them.

As he showed Hoffman to the door, he commented “I doubt the government was bothered at all about natives in Mozambique, as it’s the Zulu and Xhosa whom the government and most whites, for that matter, dislike the most on account of their numbers and the fact their homeland falls within South Africa itself. Anyways it was nice speaking with you, I hope was of some help.”

As soon as the strange foreign woman was outside, he closed the door quickly on her. After all, the prying eyes of suspicious neighbours.

"And, I think that Broussard does not want to bring this issue to the attention of your government until he has prepared all of the evidence. It's been several days, they should be coming in soon."

“Agreed, when your government does broach this issue with Pretoria, exactly how and with whom you bring this up with will be most critical.”

“It is entirely possible that someone in the government does actually know about this incident – so the last thing you want to do is go into the lion’s den itself to rat out on the lion. Or even if it is an isolated incident, it is still damning enough information that it could be turned around as blackmail inside the Volksraad.”

As Boermsa departed, he turned around and quietly said to Wilhelm, “Be careful, my friend…”

OOC: I will detail the DNA and forensic reports in my next post later today or tomorrow.

Edited December 19, 2009 by Botha

[Vedran]

Van der Merwe looked somewhat perplexed when Xandra Hoffman spoke of Transvaal’s treatment of blacks. Unbeknownst to her, it was part of the cruel irony that often appears in stratified, discriminatory societies, where the oppressed in one social strata nevertheless look down or fail to acknowledge the oppression of those ‘beneath’ them.

As he showed Hoffman to the door, he commented “I doubt the government was bothered at all about natives in Mozambique, as it’s the Zulu and Xhosa whom the government and most whites, for that matter, dislike the most on account of their numbers and the fact their homeland falls within South Africa itself. Anyways it was nice speaking with you, I hope was of some help.”

As soon as the strange foreign woman was outside, he closed the door quickly on her. After all, the prying eyes of suspicious neighbours.

"Thank you for your help Mr. Van der Merwe, do not be surprised if this shows up on the news in the future, here or elsewhere."

After she was out the door, Xandra used standard evasion procedures to shake anyone who may have been tailing her after seeing her enter Van der Merwe's house.

“Agreed, when your government does broach this issue with Pretoria, exactly how and with whom you bring this up with will be most critical.”

“It is entirely possible that someone in the government does actually know about this incident – so the last thing you want to do is go into the lion’s den itself to rat out on the lion. Or even if it is an isolated incident, it is still damning enough information that it could be turned around as blackmail inside the Volksraad.”

As Boermsa departed, he turned around and quietly said to Wilhelm, “Be careful, my friend…”

"One more thing, Mr. Boersma...you have served with the government of Transvaal for quite some time. You should know best who can be trusted with this information and who cannot."

Edited December 19, 2009 by Vedran

[Botha]

Boersma stopped in his tracks and thought. “You know, that is a very good question…”

After giving some thought, he continued “Well you cannot go to the Interior Ministry because Van Matteus has still not got around to appointing a replacement to Van Zyl since his disappearance around the time of the Karma War.”

“Anyone who you could trust is probably powerless to do anything about it, although Archbishop Cornelius Hoof, who is Minister of Religion, might be a possible option as the government might listen to him if he was able to bring up the subject. Problem is he is a dithery old man who keeps out of politics except when brought in for a consulting role in ethical questions.”

“Another option is approaching Field Marshal Cruywagen. He has a reputation for being just in such matters. Besides, I believe your government has good contacts with him.

Once Boersma had departed, Wilhelm was handed the coronor's report from the AIC investigation:

CORONOR'S REPORT

All twelve bodies had evidence of gunshot wounds made at point-blank to the head – although this appears not to be the cause of death for any of the victims. Some of the bodies appear to have been buried and then dug up, only to be shot. Some of the bodies have evidence of embalming. While it is my opinion that the bodies were all buried at the camp location at the same time (based on similar dirt moisture levels found under nails, in nasal openings, etc.) it is beyond a doubt based on their various levels of decay that these victims all perished at different times, some as long as two years ago and one as recent as a couple of weeks. Therefore my time line is these bodies were placed at the site there no more than 14 days prior to discovery. On the most recent victim, a woman, a business card was found with a name (Julie du Prees) and a telephone number written on its back which we have traced to a Maputo address.

Edited December 22, 2009 by Botha

[Vedran]

Boersma stopped in his tracks and thought. “You know, that is a very good question…”

After giving some thought, he continued “Well you cannot go to the Interior Ministry because Van Matteus has still not got around to appointing a replacement to Van Zyl since his disappearance around the time of the Karma War.”

“Anyone who you could trust is probably powerless to do anything about it, although Archbishop Cornelius Hoof, who is Minister of Religion, might be a possible option as the government might listen to him if he was able to bring up the subject. Problem is he is a dithery old man who keeps out of politics except when brought in for a consulting role in ethical questions.”

“Another option is approaching Field Marshal Cruywagen. He has a reputation for being just in such matters. Besides, I believe your government has good contacts with him.

Once Boersma had departed, Wilhelm was handed the coronor's report from the AIC investigation:

CORONOR'S REPORT

All twelve bodies had evidence of gunshot wounds made at point-blank to the head – although this appears not to be the cause of death for any of the victims. Some of the bodies appear to have been buried and then dug up, only to be shot. Some of the bodies have evidence of embalming. While it is my opinion that the bodies were all buried at the camp location at the same time (based on similar dirt moisture levels found under nails, in nasal openings, etc.) it is beyond a doubt based on their various levels of decay that these victims all perished at different times, some as long as two years ago and one as recent as a couple of weeks. Therefore my time line is these bodies were placed at the site there no more than 14 days prior to discovery. On the most recent victim, a woman, a business card was found with a name (Julie du Prees) and a telephone number written on its back which we have traced to a Maputo address.

At the time the Major was boarding a boat back to Quelimane, the DNA tests being conducted there finally came back with results. Of course, without the Transvaler records to check them against, they were useless.

An AIC agent purchased a prepaid cellphone using cash from the agency's budget and called the number on the business card, posing as a "wrong number" caller just to see who answered. After recoding the result, the phone was destroyed. Additionally, any public records the Transvalers had about the address were consulted.

In Pretoria, Ambassador Anton Dietz contacted the office of Paul Cruywagen and requested a meeting to discuss an issue which had arisen in the joint territory, citing the fact that Cruywagen would be the one to contact about such things, being that Arctica-Transvaal had no formal government yet and was basically under military governance.

[Botha]

One of Lt. Colonel Broussard sergeants burst into his office suddenly as he was going through some routine paperwork.

“Sir, that Portuguese translator – the one who worked with us and the natives – he’s been found, dead. The local police constabulary was called to a hotel this morning after the innkeeper found him dead, his head stuffed into the toilet to drown him. Looks like he put up a fight too, there was blood all over the place and damage done to the room. Anyways one of our men overheard about this unusual incident on the police radio and checked into it further. When he arrived on the scene of the crime, he recognized him as our translator.”

- - -

When the number was called, a woman answered. Before the AIC agent hung up, he was able to get the woman’s name, Julie. A quick look of the local telephone directory and property tax records confirmed the number and address belong to Julie du Prees.

- - -

Meanwhile, Anton Dietz contacted Field Marshal Paul Cruywagen’s office. Despite being immersed dealing with suppressing the troublesome rebellion in the Northern Cape and recent negotiations regarding the new Tahoe air base in Namibia, the marshal was nevertheless willing to make some time for the Arcticans on account of his old ties to that country.

Cruywagen appeared a few hours later at the Arctican embassy in Pretoria.

“Good afternoon Ambassador Dietz” the gruff commander-in-chief of Transvaal’s military said, giving a hearty handshake in the process, “what can I assist you with?”

[Vedran]

One of Lt. Colonel Broussard sergeants burst into his office suddenly as he was going through some routine paperwork.

“Sir, that Portuguese translator – the one who worked with us and the natives – he’s been found, dead. The local police constabulary was called to a hotel this morning after the innkeeper found him dead, his head stuffed into the toilet to drown him. Looks like he put up a fight too, there was blood all over the place and damage done to the room. Anyways one of our men overheard about this unusual incident on the police radio and checked into it further. When he arrived on the scene of the crime, he recognized him as our translator.”

"...huh. That's odd. Since I hear the Transvalers are being made aware of this investigation soon, our involvement here will soon become official. Have one of our men 'assist' the local police in their investigation. Have him make sure that no evidence is misplaced...also, I want a report from my men watching the village. If something happened to the translator, the natives may be connected to this somehow."

Meanwhile, Anton Dietz contacted Field Marshal Paul Cruywagen’s office. Despite being immersed dealing with suppressing the troublesome rebellion in the Northern Cape and recent negotiations regarding the new Tahoe air base in Namibia, the marshal was nevertheless willing to make some time for the Arcticans on account of his old ties to that country.

Cruywagen appeared a few hours later at the Arctican embassy in Pretoria.

“Good afternoon Ambassador Dietz” the gruff commander-in-chief of Transvaal’s military said, giving a hearty handshake in the process, “what can I assist you with?”

"Thank you for meeting with me, Marshal. I know you have your hands full, so I will be brief. Evidence of a grave criminal act has been uncovered in the Arctica-Transvaal territory. The details are in this folder but the basics are that someone has been digging up bodies, shooting them in the head, and transporting them to an abandoned labor camp in Mozambique.

The ATDF down there is determined to get to the root of the problem, but the trail of evidence has led into Transvaal itself, which is obviously outside of the Defense Force's jurisdiction. They've been gathering evidence for a while now and finally have enough to present it to your government.

The problem is that we have no idea who may or may not be involved in this conspiracy or for what purpose. It may be a random string of murders, or an internal security threat that just happened to be caught due to the sudden territorial changes. Whatever it is, I trust that the information we have gathered so far will be better off in your hands than with one of the more controversial members of your government."

Dietz slid a thick folder across his desk to Cruywagen, containing everything the investigation turned up, or at least every piece of evidence that had not been attained by spies. Officially, Arctica had no spies operating in Transvaal or any foreign country.

"And, Marshal...if we crack this case, it will show to the world the success of our joint territory venture, and the level of cooperation two countries can exhibit if they commit to peace."

[Botha]

Marshal Cruywagen pulled a drag off his cigarette as he looked through the folder.

After a couple of minutes, in his characteristic gruff voice, he croaked “This is very unusual information which your people have uncovered. I am not quite sure what to make of it myself.”

“Either you have stumbled across something rather unsavoury that was taking place at the camps, or you are being set-up to believe that. The question is, if it is the later and your evidence here seems to indicate that, who is doing this and what do they expect to gain from this?”

“A major problem going on in Transvaal right now is Prime Minister van Matteus for whatever her own reasons has failed to appoint an Interior Minister since Karl van Zyl’s failed coup attempt in July. Therefore we are experiencing a whole mess of assortment of security lapses and blunder – such as the assassination attempt on the Staatspresident back in October or the recent Boer rebellion in the Northern Cape. The Ministry is running itself directionless and would be useless in any investigation.”

“There is little I can do at this point except quietly check Krygsmagte records for any possible, unusual orders issued related to troops stationed in the Nacala district. All that would do is confirm or rule out any army involvement or personal.”

Then Cruywagen had an idea.

“You know, there is something you could do in the meanwhile. Contact the prime ministers’ office requesting a meeting with the Minister of Interior. Make it something mundane, like investigating possible smuggling operations uncovered in Transvaal-Arctica, something boring enough politically that wouldn’t require the attention of the prime minister herself. It’ll however have to force her to appoint someone – either as Interior Minister or simply as a liaison officer with your embassy… and hopefully that person would be sympathetic enough to your investigation to gain you access to any records you would require to continue investigating.”

“And if she ends up meeting with you, then play along with it and see where it leads.”

Before leaving, Cruywagen added “…see if she will give you Boersma to work with. He is currently on the outside of the government but someone who is resourceful enough but also not a political threat. But most important he has a genuine integrity for justice.”

[Botha]

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