Pretoria - Efforts to repatriate the bodies of the slain former Pretoria East pastor Werner Groenewald and his two children from Afghanistan are facing “challenges”. But the remains could possibly be back in time for a memorial service scheduled for Friday, family attorney Teresa Conradie said on Tuesday.
The three were killed in an attack on their home in Kabul by the Taliban two weeks ago. The compound they lived in and their house were razed to the ground.
Groenewald’s wife Hannelie, a doctor, was at work at a clinic during the attack. She returned to find the bodies of her husband Werner, 46, their son Jean-Pierre, 17, and daughter Rode, 15, being taken away in ambulances.
The Department of International Relations last week indicated that the South African embassy in Pakistan was working round the clock to get Hannelie emergency travel documents so she could return home as soon as possible. It was also working with Afghan authorities on repatriating the remains of the three dead family members.
At a press briefing on Tuesday, department spokesman Clayson Monyela said those processes had been successful and the bodies were due to arrive back on Tuesday. But Conradie refuted those reports, saying the bodies were still in Afghanistan. “That’s not true. We’ve met challenges in bringing them back, but we’re working towards getting them here in the next two days.”
She said Hannelie was already back in the country, and was being afforded the space and privacy she needed.
But on Tuesday afternoon, Nelson Kgwethe, also speaking on behalf of the department, said the widow was still in Afghanistan. “She is still there and has indicated that she would like to process the repatriation from that side,” he said.
When told that the family spokeswoman had said Hannelie was home, he said: “We have no authority to discuss the details of her movements.”
He confirmed that the bodies were still in Afghanistan. “We are still working with the authorities in that country to get them back.”
A memorial service is to be held at the Dutch Reformed Church Moreleta Park on Friday. Groenewald served as a pastor there for five years before the family moved to troubled Afghanistan as aid workers.
Pretoria News