Amnesty Hearings — Cape Town — 1998-09-09

MR MEYER: Yes, I was transferred from them to Panorama Hospital.  To make it short, when I went home, I had still a lot of pain.  Physically my arm was in a sling and after two months, this arm didn't want to straighten.  I had to get physiotherapy treatment.
	I had a lot of pain to get it straightened.  It was very difficult for them at that stage, to get my arm right.  I went through a lot of pain.  This whole shooting I went through a lot of pain.  That is nothing against the fact of the spiritual pain I had.
	When I was in the Panorama Hospital, after three days I think, then one day something strange happened to me.  Suddenly my chest, I couldn't breathe and my throat just pulled together to such an extent that I couldn't talk.  I didn't have any voice.  I was in such a state that I felt I could die.
	I couldn't talk.  That was a shock, they said it is the shock of the shooting, because when I was waiting to be killed.  I was waiting for them to kill me, I couldn't defend myself.  That made a big shock on my body, but after a few hours, I regained my voice.
	I had some psychological treatment as part of that.  And then I have had sleep trouble, insomnia.  I also had to get medical treatment for that.  I couldn't sleep because in the night I got nightmares and people were shooting at me.
	Up to this stage, I am battling to sleep regularly.  I have got sleeping problems.  On the other hand, my health is good.  The arm doesn't hinder me, not much.  I train with weight and it doesn't effect me.  My arm is just a little bit stiff, that is all, but I would say psychologically I had a lot of strain.  I still have a lot of strain.
	I want to say that my family also went through a lot of strain as a cause of this.

CHAIRPERSON: What can you tell me about the man Makwanasi?

MR MEYER: Makwanasi was a Christian.  The only Christian I knew there that could have testified to this effect, that could say I am a Christian.  He was very quiet man, very nice, he was a friend of mine.
	He dealt with me in Biblical things.  He was just a bit withdrawn because he was not Xhosa, he was another tribe.  I think he was Zulu or something, Swazi, I am not totally sure.
	He couldn't mix very easily with the other people.  I think we had as a cause of that, we could become friends.

CHAIRPERSON: What happened to his injuries?  What sort of injuries did he have?

MR MEYER: I couldn't really recognise his injuries, because things are going so fast when such a thing is happening.  What I have heard is that he had a bullet through his head, and a bullet struck his body in the middle, the hip bone, and when such a bullet strikes, it starts wobbling through the body and his intestines were totally destroyed.  That is what I heard.

CHAIRPERSON: Did you hear that he had died?

MR MEYER: When he ducked on my lap, I didn't hear him die.  I was under the impression that he was still living, because when I reached the Groote Schuur Hospital, they brought him in there and then he was dead.
	I asked the people if he was dead.  That was also a shock for me because I knew him very well, he was a very nice guy.

CHAIRPERSON: Where was he from, where was he living at that time?

MR MEYER: At the time he was living in Langa.  Langa was the place ...

CHAIRPERSON: Do you know whether he had family?

MR MEYER: He had family.  One night he introduced his sister to me.  As she was still youngish, I think she could have been 17 or 18, a very friendly person.  That is all I have seen of his family.

CHAIRPERSON: How old was Makwanasi?

MR MEYER: Makwanasi, I wouldn't say it is so, but I think he told me once he was 21.  It could have been more than 21, he was still very young.

MR MAPOMA: Sorry Chairperson, for the record Chairperson, Mrs Linda Mvundlela was notified as a mother of Mr Makwanasi the late, and she was here on Monday and I spoke to her about this matter, with her about this matter, and she advised me that she is not opposing the application, but her son died and she never received anything from the government as a result of the death of her son.

CHAIRPERSON: What is her name?

MR MAPOMA: Her first name is Linda, her surname is Mvundlela of Cala Street 57, Nyanga.  She is not here today and she indicated to me that she is not interested at the hearing itself, so she excused herself.

CHAIRPERSON: We will convey these particulars to the R&R Committee?

MR MAPOMA: Yes Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: Have you done that or haven't you done that?

MR MAPOMA: I haven't done that as yet.

CHAIRPERSON: You will do that at the close of proceedings?

MR MAPOMA: Yes Sir.

CHAIRPERSON: Give them full details about where she is and her full names and in case she is entitled to any kind of compensation.

MR MAPOMA: As the Chairperson pleases.  And for the record again Chairperson, the people who were killed at Crossroads, the policemen ...

CHAIRPERSON: Let us just finish with this witness.   Mr Meyer, is there anything else you would like to say?

MR MEYER: (No microphone)  I reconciled with Mr Tanda, I went to him and I gave him, we gave each other hands, and I forgave him for what he has done.
	He asked me that he wanted to meet my family also to apologise to them.  Then I said to him, it is not necessary I will just tell them myself.  They understand the position.  I have listened to the Court here and I have come to the impression that what has happened, they have the right to say, they have their own convictions.  I can feel with that.
	At that time, he had his convictions.  I must say, I accept his excuse, because that was part of his living.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you very much.

MR MEYER: That is all I want to put.

CHAIRPERSON: Mr Arendse, are there any questions you want to put to this witness?

NORMAN ARENDSE: No Chairperson, save to say that I am really sorry to hear both personally and on behalf of in this case, applicant Mr Tanda, about what happened.  I am pleased to hear that Mr Meyer says that he understood the context in which this took place at the time.
NO CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR ARENDSE

CHAIRPERSON: Mr Meyer, thank you very much.

<UNKNOWN>: .

CHAIRPERSON: Yes?  You were giving us certain further particulars?

MR MAPOMA: Yes Chairperson.  For the Crossroads shooting incident, the deceased's names are as follows, Patrick Tutu.

CHAIRPERSON: Go slowly please.  How do you spell that surname?

MR MAPOMA: Tutu.

CHAIRPERSON: Not entirely strange in this part of the world.

MR MAPOMA: Her mother has been notified.  Her name is Evelyn Tutu of 3934 Lower Crossroads, Phillipi.  And then the next deceased was Peter Dyani.

CHAIRPERSON: In the same incident?

MR MAPOMA: In the same incident Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: Spell that surname.

MR MAPOMA: Dyani.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes.

MR MAPOMA: And her next of kind was notified, the next of kind is Lulama Dyani of 1794 Unati, Nyanga East.

CHAIRPERSON: (Microphone not on)

MR MAPOMA: Unfortunately Chairperson, I am not certain whether she is a mother or a sister, but it is the next of kin who appears on the record, on the documents that we have.
	Then Sir, regarding the Khayelitsha shooting, there were six people who fell victim.  One died, the others did not die.  I have got one of them, the survivors, Mr Sihlanu Mtamzeli.
	The name of the deceased, if the Chairperson can just bear with me, the name of the deceased is Jan Mbambo.

CHAIRPERSON: Spell that.

MR MAPOMA: Jan is the first name, then the surname is Mbambo.  There is Mr Mtamzeli who is the survivor, he wants to testify.

CHAIRPERSON: How many survivors were there?

MR MAPOMA: There were five survivors Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: (Microphone not on)

MR MAPOMA: Two of them got injured Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: (Microphone not on)

MR MAPOMA: The name of the survivors, they are not in the bundle of the document, but I do have them in the summary which I furnished the Committee some time after the hearing.