Human Rights Violation Hearings — East London — 1996-04-17

MR SANDI: Can you tell us, is there anything that happened on that day before you met?  Do you think that there was a fight during the day on that day?  A clash, maybe, between the people?

MR SHIYANI: Can you please repeat that?

MR SANDI: Do you think maybe one of you had a fight with someone, or maybe days before that?

MR SHIYANI: No not even one of us was involved in a fight. EAST LONDON  HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
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I don't know, maybe you'll allow me to give a brief background if I'm not going to waste your time?

MR SANDI: Yes you can give me that background, but I think it's a background that has to go along with this day that we are referring to.  Yes you can carry on if it is connected with this day.

MR SHIYANI: No it's not connected at all with this day but it's ...(intervention)

MR SANDI: Well we can carry on with that.

MR SHIYANI: Well after leaving they came back.  I said to them, well you can leave and come back because I am busy.  Well they went off, they came back.  On their return they said to me they want to get a case of cool drinks because I was selling cool drinks.  Now Jeff went into the kitchen ...(intervention).

MR SANDI: I'm not disturbing you, I want us to understand exactly, it's Jeff Wabena and Joe Jongolo, are they the people who arrived at your place.  Were there people at home?

MR SHIYANI: Yes my sister, Nomahlubi, Novelile and my sister's son.

MR SANDI: Now this sister sitting next to you, what is she doing here?

MR SHIYANI: There was Nori as well, who was my girl friend.

MR SANDI: Were they not at home during that time? When these three people arrived, were they already at home?

MR SHIYANI: The three arrived first at about nine and I said, go and come back.  Now they came back late, I think at about eleven.  I didn't realise who was in the car because there were only four people coming into the house.  Well
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they went through the kitchen door which is opposite a room, my girlfriend Nori, wanted to go and went on to say that she was also going because she understood very well that it was the 24th, Christmas Eve.  So she thought we were really going for entertainment, and my sister said, "No don't let her go",  because I had told my sister that I was going somewhere else.  She actually doubted that such a place had nothing to do with entertainment.
 Nori said, "I am going".  Well I didn't have any problem because I knew that I can misbehave.  Well all of us went out to get into the car.  I said to Joe Jongolo, "Can you please wait for us at Jeff's place?"  Now he was already gone 30 minutes before time to wait for us there together with Virginia.  Just about 100 metres from Jeff's place, there's a shop and a bottle store, which still operates today. The time was now 12 o'clock.  Langamandhla asked, "Why is this bottle store open at this time?" And I replied that being Christmas they may be still selling.  There was a big light and you could even see in the car.  Jeff was called by people from the bottle store.  He went out of the car to meet them.
 We said, "Jeff, we'll proceed to your house, you'll find us there".  Well Jeff went to those people and he came back while we were still waiting in the car, myself, Hinsa, Simi and the late Nori.  He showed us a Christmas present he received.  Now were going to put on the lights in his house because it was still in darkness.  Because it was the 24th and children are silly during that time, they were so used to burning houses, and we wanted also to get some material to use in this mission.  Hinza went out and I was about when I said, "Oh I am not getting our of this car because I am 
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still talking to Nori, if there is anything please do call me."  Well they went out of the car and stepped into their house.  The rain was falling, they lit up the house and came back.

MR SANDI: Where is this Jeff, is he here today?

MR SHIYANI: No he passed away.

MR SANDI: When did he pass away?  When you were attacked or was it on a separate case?

MR SHIYANI: Well I think it was in 1982.  He was shot at Section 8 at an ANC meeting.

MR SANDI: Is that the time when you were all attacked? Well carry on with the events of the day.

MR SHIYANI: Well, they came back, they opened the boot, and they put the materials into the boot. He and Jeff climbed into the car.  I remember Jeff had his hand outside, trying to close the door.  Well we heard a shot.  These shots went on quite a long time, and I thought it was a machine gun. I thought, oh well, it was in the next street, I was mistaken, it was directed to us.
 While the second volley of shots went off, he left the door. He himself went under the car and said, "This is an ambush!".

MR SANDI: Were you shot at with guns? Do you have an idea what sort of guns they were?

MR SHIYANI: The guns that were used to shoot us were AK 47's.

MR SANDI: Can I ask you how you know that it was an AK 47?

MR SHIYANI: Well while we were still in the hospital, we were told that the cartridges that were found indicated that they were from an AK 47.

MR SANDI: Can we go back a little while?  Jeff steps into
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the car, he tries to close the door, shots go off, now can you carry on?

MR SHIYANI: Well Jeff stepped into the car, while trying to close the door, shots went off.  Well they went on and stopped.  A second volley of shots came and he just said, "This is an ambush!".  You know, when it's an ambush, you all die.  Well when I looked thoroughly into the car the right hand side of Nori's head was badly shot up, I was hopeless.  I woke up, I tried to get out of the car, my leg was left behind in the car, it had been severed.  I went to the opposite house and knocked at the front door.  It was difficult to open the door.  People were really scared, I fell and that was the end.
 I only woke up at the hospital. That was the following day on the 26th. I had come directly from the theatre.  Opening my eyes I realised Jeff was close to me, but the Ciskeian police were there waking us up.  Among them, Bopundevu was there. He explained that my case is now in the hands of the police.

MR SANDI: Where is this Kwanisalabela you referred to?

MR SHIYANI: I think he was arrested.

MR SANDI: Did people die in that attack?

MR SHIYANI: As I already mentioned, Nori who sat next me had her head blown off and she died and Virginia died because a bullet hit her in the nose.

MR SANDI: Do the people that were involved know that you are if front of the Commission today giving evidence?

MR SHIYANI: They have knowledge because I told them that  there's a Commission, and I would like to appear.

MR SANDI: Did you manage to tell some of the people that were really affected by this attack?  Semi is here, she is
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next to me, she knows.

MR SANDI: Hinsa?

MR SHIYANI: I tried to trace him, I went to him to ask him whether there is any information which he can give with regard to this, and he just said the information which he has is so little.  I was thinking, because he's a lawyer, he didn't want to expose information and he said, there is too little information available.

MR SANDI: Mr Shiyani, where did the investigation of this case at the police station end up?