Human Rights Violation Hearings — Duncan Village — 1996-09-24

BONGANI FINCA: We are going to bring forward Ms Nomasonto Kumalo.  You behaved well yesterday, the whole day and even today.  Now, this is the person next to the last one.  I would like you to behave, because we started well, so we should end this hearing well.
 Can you please be quiet and we should give respect to the two people, thank you.

REV XUNDU: Thank you Mr Chairman.  I would like them to take an oath.

UNKNOWN: (sworn states)

REV XUNDU: Is the other lady going to swear, or is she just going to accompany you?

UNKNOWN: No she can't speak.

REV XUNDU: Thank you.  To you Mr Chairman.

BONGANI FINCA: We welcome you Ms Nomasonto Kumalo.  We thank you for coming here in front of this Commission with three issues concerning you, Vuyelwa Kumalo and Nomakhosazana Kumalo.
 Ms Maya is going to ask you questions

MS MAYA: Thank you Mr Chairman.  I would like to greet you Ms Kumalo.  You came, you brought a set story in front of this Commission about your mother and your sister and you saw your house being burnt and you saw both of them die.
 They died in front of you.  Can you please tell us about your family first.
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UNKNOWN: Vuyelwa Edith Kumalo is my mother, she was a teacher here in Duncan Village.

MS MAYA: Can you please come nearer to the mike.

UNKNOWN: Edith Vuyelwa Kumalo who was my mother, she was a teacher here in Duncan Village and it was her last year before she pensioned.  Nomakhosazana is my older sister, we all stayed together in our home, together with my child and she was three years old at that time.
 She is the one sitting next to me.

MS MAYA: Is your child Ayabulela?

UNKNOWN: Yes.

MS MAYA: Were you any member of a political organisation at home?

UNKNOWN: Yes, I was a member of a youth organisation in Duncan Village.

MS MAYA: What about your mother and your older sister?

UNKNOWN: No, they were not involved, especially my mother.

MS MAYA: In the statement in front of us, we see that you are speaking of a feud between AZAPO and UDF and you said your family was accused of being AZAPO members.  Can you please tell us about that?

UNKNOWN: At that time here in Duncan Village, if you see something wrong being done by the youth, something not good for example, there was a tendency that if one was drunk, he was given OMO to drink and if you tried to stop people from doing that, people were accusing you of being an AZAPO member.
 Secondly I was called at the People's Court by my next door neighbours, Duraxaba was one of them, they called me to the People's Court and they accused me of being an AZAPO member and in 1971 I had an affair with a member of the 
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security.
 There is a guy who said he's got information about me, and then I asked them how old was I in 1971, but they couldn't answer me.  All the people tried to stop this Mr Sizane was there in the People's Court and he said we are not there to accuse someone about something she didn't do.
 On another occasion while I was at work, there was a lady who came to me and she said to me, it was on Christmas Eve, she said to me Nomasonto, your home is going to be burnt and I went home, I said to my mother she must take the children together with her, my child and my sister's child, I told her to go home at her home.

MS MAYA: Without disturbing you, who was the lady who told you this?

UNKNOWN: ; I think I should keep her name, I will say it privately.

MS MAYA: Okay.

BONGANI FINCA: People, I've already said that you've behaved yourselves yesterday and even today.  This evidence, although you are listening to it, is directed to us as the Commission and according to our law one has a right that if she doesn't want to put someone's life in danger, she cannot say the word, she can say someone's name in private, so please don't disturb our work, the Commission's work.
 We have rules which we work under, so please allow us to follow those rules.  If there is someone here who doesn't accept that, it is that person's right to leave here, but now we have to give this witness the right.

MS MAYA: Without disturbing you, when you were told that your house is going to be burnt, did they burn it?

UNKNOWN: No, they didn't burn it at that time.  I asked
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this lady who are these people who are going to burn my house, she told me that she just heard that there was list of people who which - their houses are going to be burnt and she said she saw (indistinct) and I went back home and told my mother to go back home in Ndebe.
 I came here to Duncan Village and I met Joe Jordan together with one other comrade and I told him that someone said my home is going to be burnt and I can't stand this victimisation any more, I would go to the police and report this to the police.
 Joe said to me, told me not to go to the police.  He said that people will accuse me if I go to the police.

MS MAYA: What happened in short?

UNKNOWN: He called Dudunaba and he called him to the meeting in Duncan Village.  Dudu asked me who told me this and then I said I am not going to tell you who told me and he said that he didn't say this.
 They told Dudu that if anything happened to my house, Dudu will have to answer that.

MS MAYA: Let us now come to the 4th of March 1986.  What happened on that day?

UNKNOWN: At night, on that day we were sleeping.  While we were sleeping, my mother woke me up.  She was woken up by stones which were thrown to the house and we had to wake up.  We were used to this, because people used to break windows at my home, but we couldn't see who were these people.
 I went outside on that day, I went to the lounge on that day and there was a confusion at that time, because all the windows were thrown by the stones.
 I went to the kitchen, I could smell the strong smell of petrol.  The door couldn't open, it was locked.  I said 
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to my sister, Nomakhosazana, please open the door, so that they can come in.

MS MAYA: Why didn't the doors open?

UNKNOWN: I don't know, even today.  While we were still looking at this situation, I peeped through the window and I saw many people and I could recognise some of them, because the live at the same street.
 I also went to the back window and then I saw one with a petrol gallon, it is Maqotinala Xonti.  I went to my mother's room where my child was sleeping and I could see the fire.
 The fire was in the same room in which my mother was sleeping.  And my mother was hit by fire that time, and I took the child to the lounge.
 And the fire went through the house at that time, there were no burglar proofs fortunately, because they had to be repaired.  So I managed to go out with the window with my child.
 I wrapped her with a duvet and then I came back, I left the child outside and the walls were falling down at that time and then I met my mother, she was down at that time, near the door of the lounge and the fire was too strong at that time.
 I looked for my sister, her hair was burning and I tried to take my sister out, and I succeeded to do that.
 What surprised me is that my neighbours came and they tried to help us.  But one of the neighbours - he was complaining because he said that his house is going to be burnt too.
 People tried to help us, they gave us water.  I didn't know at that time that I was also burning.  I tried to help 
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my mother and they helped us, they gave us blankets, they wrapped us with the blankets, the neighbours tried to do that.
 One of our neighbours who had a phone, and I am not going to mention the name, the neighbour phoned the ambulance and the police.

MS MAYA: At the time you went out through the window, where were these people you saw outside?

UNKNOWN: No, they were not there at that time.