Human Rights Violation Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — UNKNOWN

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... you say these people came, they tried to shoot you, and then they went to Awetha's place.

WITNESS:   They proceeded to Awetha's place.  They came back and stood at my door.  I think I was confused.  I was standing there at the door with my son.  The other one said to the other one he must shoot.  He said, "No, my gun just doesn't operate."  Sikizo took the gun and he tried to shoot me, but he just couldn't.  Thu was just sleeping on the ground.  He did absolutely nothing.  He just slept on the ground.  From there I pretended as if I was picking something, then they started to run.  I was supposed to have died a long time ago.  After that Elpheus came to me.  He was injured.  He said Thulani had shot him on the thigh.  He was full of blood and he was limping.  He asked me who phoned me.  I said I didn't know, it was just a female who had said my family's getting finished.  I don't remember when we took him to hospital.  I think it was the following day.  It continued just like that

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... was he taken to?

WITNESS:   I don't remember quite well.  I think he can remind me, my son can remind me.  I was very confused.  I didn't know what I was doing at that time.  It went on like that.  After quite a while one day I heard rumours that there was Sikizo with a policeman by the name of Khumalo.  When he got to me he wanted to read a letter.  There's something that I skipped.  I went to an attorney to give a statement because I was being harassed by Inkatha.  My attorney drafted the affidavit.  He gave them an interdict.  Sikizo came to my place with the very same interdict that he had received.  He told my relatives that he was coming that very same evening and he was going to kill us.  He didn't care about any interdict.  I got into the house.  I was tired because I was coming back from work.  I heard my daughter-in-law screaming, saying my children were dying.  I saw Sikizo with Khumalo, a policeman, as well as another one.  His surname is Zulu.  They shot my youngest son on the shoulder.  He still has a bullet in his body.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... at your house, or was that at another place?

WITNESS:   That happened in my place.

MR LAX: (Inaudible)

WITNESS:   Smolenji.  Then Simon, who went out to go and help Smolenji, when he got there they shot him on the thigh.  When I got there he was on the ground lying.  I was coming from the house, trying to look as to what was happening, because I hear gunshots outside.  When I got there it was Smolenji and this other one.  Sikizo, as well as his accomplices were there.  I went out with my panga and I chased them.  They ran away.  They said they were going to fetch Awetha.  I asked them why they had injured my sons.  Luckily my friend came.  We took Simon to the hospital.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... if you can just help us to get a complete picture.

WITNESS:   It was Nxane.  He's a policeman.  He also saw when they shot my sons.  We took them to Northdale.  The police came back now.  They wanted guns from me.  They said I must take out the guns, white policemen.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... they were from?

WITNESS:   They were either from Seckland or from the compound.  They were police who were sent to come and kill us all.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... are you referring to Pentrich?

WITNESS:  Yes, I am referring to Pentrich.  Time went on.  There's so much that I've skipped.  There was a time when policemen came to take us all.  We were assaulted.  They even threw tear gas inside the house.  I had skipped that because it's quite a long time since this happened.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... you a little bit here.  I've got a copy of the court papers, and from what I can see your lawyers brought a case against Sikizo Zuma.

WITNESS:   That is correct.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... against Jerome Mncwabe, Sikizo Zuma and Thulani Ngcobo.

WITNESS:   That is correct.

MR LAX: It's not clear when the case was first heard, but I think it was the 28th of January 1988.  That is the first case you brought against Sikizo.

WITNESS:   These cases were brought together.  We just didn't understand where the case was heading to.  They just told me that my children deserved to die because they were against the Government.

MR LAX: (Inaudible)

WITNESS:   It was Inkatha's attorney.  Ntombela was there.  They said the ANC deserved to be killed.  The Judge said, "You are talking politics now.  We must close this case.  Go and talk to Inkatha as well as the ANC."  I said, "Then this means this is not a court, this is just shit."

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... only just received, which we will look at later.  The Court ordered an interim interdict against Jerome Mncwabe, Sikizo Zuma and Thulani Ngcobo.  They were ordered by the Court to refrain from intimidating, assaulting you, attacking and destroying your property, making any sorts of threats against you.  That was not a final order, but it was what is called in law an interim order.

WITNESS:   When that interdict came out that was the time that it seems they were given permission to come and kill me, the four of them.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... after that you say Sikizo came to you with some papers and he threatened you further.

WITNESS:   That is correct.  That was immediately after that.

MR LAX: (Inaudible)  ... after Simon was shot, and Smallridge.

WITNESS:   That is correct.

MR LAX: Simon was taken to hospital in Northdale Hospital.

WITNESS:   That is correct.

MR LAX: (Inaudible)

WITNESS:   That is correct.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... Sikizo arrived at the hospital.

WITNESS:   That is correct.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ...  court, and Sikizo was warned by the Judge that he should not come anywhere near the hospital.

WITNESS:   I don't know what happened there because they just wouldn't listen to whatever they were being told.  If they could listen to the Court probably they could not have shot my son.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... a little bit.  What happened to Simon after he was in hospital?

WITNESS:   We heard that Sikizo made attempts to go and finish him off.  Then that's where he died, because the bullet couldn't be extracted out of his body.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... from his injuries while he was in hospital?

WITNESS:   I could say that is correct, but it took quite a few days for him.  He didn't die immediately.  He stayed there for almost a month if I am not mistaken.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... understand that.  And your son, Smallridge?

WITNESS:   He was shot on the shoulder.  It went through the arm and his arm is partially paralysed.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... at the moment?

WITNESS:   He is at home.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... your other son, Thokozani, who was attacked by Sikizo.  What happened to him?

WITNESS:   Aren't you referring to the one I am sitting with, Thulani, not

MR LAX: Thokozani?

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... refers to a Thokozani.  If it's wrong then we must correct that.

WITNESS:   Thokozani and Simon are one and the same person.  I think there's a mistake there.  Sikizo shot Simon and Smolenji.  This one survived.  He was there, but he survived the attack, as well as his elder brother.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... Elpheus Mthembu.  What is his Zulu name, just for the record please?

WITNESS:   It's Thokozani.

MR LAX: Did Thokozani suffer any permanent effects of his injuries?

WITNESS:   He was very much traumatised.  He had to leave his job because they were also hunting him down, they wanted to kill him too.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... was a fourth person - sorry, a fifth person who was cited as an applicant, and that was a person referred to as Ernest Mthembu.  Who is Ernest?

WITNESS:   He is my eldest son, the one who died.

MR LAX: If you can just help us clear this up.  When did he die, and where?