Amnesty Hearings — Umtata — 2000-03-28

MR MTIMKULU READS STATEMENT: Chairperson, the various legal teams here, the victims and members of the audience, I have been asked by the victims to make a statement in this Commission addressing ourselves to the applicant.
	On behalf of the victims that mandated me, we want to express our happiness, that is the fact that Capt Siqhola has had courage to stand up and tell the story.  We have been here in this part of the Eastern Cape.  We always wondered why it looks like there's not be any atrocities reported in this area and we felt hurt that no one was prepared to come up.  Now that Mr Siqhola has come up we say we are very encouraged by the decision that he has taken.
	We also want to put on record, that is this sitting here, we know there are a lot of others who were involved.  We see some of them sitting here.  We have taken note of their reflection of events.  We know for a fact that they were directly involved, we see them here, we can quote their names.  They know.  We know that Capt Siqhola was not the only one who committed atrocities.  We wish to express our disappointment to this Commission that there are still people who are sitting here and still prepared to hide what happened in this part of our country. 
	To the Commission we want to say that if Mr Siqhola qualifies for amnesty in terms of the requirements of the law, we as victims have got no problems with that.  As we said earlier on that we are encouraged by the decision that he alone has taken.  I do not know what the other members of the then Transkei security are prepared to do but we're saying we know as well as they do that they committed atrocities and we're saying we wonder as to whether they are prepared to extend their hand of friendship to us.
	And lastly to Mr Siqhola, we're saying we hope from now we will be able to put the past behind us and we hope again we'll be able to interact as there are many, many other issues that we still want information about with one of our own friends who died.  Mention was made here of Solly Present, who to some of us as a friend.  Gift Maqekeza, a number of them who up to date would not know what happened to them.  We still hope that we'll be able to interact with you and be able to get to understand some of the issues that happened.  That you only, people in security, have got knowledge of.
	And on behalf of the victims here, thank you and thank you to the Commission.

CHAIRPERSON: Mr Mtimkulu, I would like to thank you for your eloquent statement and I must say that I and I'm sure I speak on behalf of my panel members, are pleased that there's been a measure of reconciliation between you and other victims and Mr Siqhola.  Although it's not a requirement in the amnesty process, it's one of the objectives of the whole Truth and Reconciliation Commission to achieve this measure of reconciliation which in this instance, like in many others, has been achieved by somebody who has come forward and admitted his offences and crimes in the past and which fact has been appreciated by the victims.  So we thank you for your statement.  Thank you.

MR MGIDLANA: Thank you, that was all.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you Mr Mgidlana.  Mr Stofile?

MR STOFILE: ...(inaudible)

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you very much.
	That then concludes the leading of evidence in this matter and I don't think, seeing it's so late we may as well carry on and just finish off the submissions to conclude the matter.  Mr Dukada, do you have any submissions you would like to make?