Share

Reeva's mom breaks silence in <em>Carte Blanche</em> interview

Cape Town – On Sunday night on Carte Blanche on M-Net (DStv 101) at 19:00 June Steenkamp, mother of Reeva Steenkamp who was shot and killed by Oscar Pistorius, will break her silence in an interview with Devi Sankaree Govender.

"I don't feel anything, he [Oscar Pistorius] is not anything to me," June Steenkamp says to Devi Sankaree Govender. "I feel angry for what he's done to her. It is my child. I gave birth to her."

On Sunday night Steenkamp takes Sankaree Govender into her home after almost two years of media silence, sharing her most intimate thoughts about life without her daughter who was killed on 14 February, Valentine’s Day, last year by the paralympic "bladerunner" who is now behind bars. Este de Klerk is the Carte Blanche producer of the big get.

Channel24 has learnt that getting and securing the interview with Steenkamp took Carte Blanche two weeks to iron out the details, with the cameras which rolled this past Tuesday at the Steenkamp home in Port Elizabeth.

Sankaree Govender tells Channel24 "it felt surreal" to do the interview and to talk to June Steenkamp, following her months covering the trial as one of the anchors on MultiChoice's Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv.

"I read the book [June Steenkamp's book published by Jonathan Ball] with great interest and there were quite a few dots I needed to connect in my head.”

'I am the mother and you have taken everything from us'

Seated in her lounge with Sankaree Govender, with a large canvas featuring Reeva's face behind them, June Steenkamp reveals her true thoughts about the trial and what it was like for her to face the man who killed her daughter day after day in court. She also says she finally reached a place where, as a Christian, she could forgive him.

"Sorry can never cover what he'd done," says June who will reveal that Oscar Pistorius "wanted to see us. He did try and make an appointment, but we weren't ready to face him".

"I think I'd like to look in his face so he can see exactly what he's done to us and he's taken away from us. I want to say to him: 'Here, I am the mother and you have taken everything from us."

On Sunday evening Carte Blanche viewers will see June talk about the "special connection" she still feels with Reeva following her death and she will also talk about her husband Barry and his struggle to confront the brutal way in which their daughter died.

June also opens up to Carte Blanche about what it has been like being financially destitute and the decisions they made around finances.

'Incredible pain'

"It can never get better, unless somebody can bring her back to life, it's never going to get better. You got to learn to live with it, to get on with your life," June tells Carte Blanche. "When I first saw him, I thought: this was the person who killed my daughter".

"And I think that I, in a way, unnerved him. And I liked that part of it. I wanted to be there for Reeva, so, to me it was good that I unnerved him."

She also reveals to Carte Blanche, and speaks openly and candidly about appearing strong but inwardly dealing with "incredible pain" that she would not wish on anyone – and the way in which she knows that no amount of time will allow her and her husband to come to terms with what happened.

"I've forgiven him. As a Christian, you have to forgive. Otherwise you going to carry all this pain inside you, and this hatred and I’m not like that," says June.

While Carte Blanche can't broadcast the full interview in its entirely, the full interview will be made available on MultiChoice's DStv Catch Up service right after Sunday evening's Carte Blanche episode.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE