Human Rights Violation Hearings — Uitenhage — 1996-08-27

CHAIRPERSON: The next witness will be Mr Zixolisile Matthews Maseti.

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: (sworn states)

CHAIRPERSON: Mr Maseti, you also going to testify about your shooting.  Here in your statement you said that you were not aware that you had been shot, you just saw people falling down and then you tried to run away and then you felt weak, you couldn't run.  What happened to you?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: I didn't notice that they had hit me and when I saw people in front of me falling down I turned and I ran away, but only for a short distance, then I fell down.  I struggled to stand up and I ran, but I fell once more.  I tried, I struggled until I got to a nearby house were I fell at the gate and people picked me up and put me into this house.  Then they took me into a car and drove me to hospital where I regained consciousness and that was in Livingstone.

CHAIRPERSON: When did you regain consciousness?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: That was after 4 days.

CHAIRPERSON: How injured were you?
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ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: My whole body was stiff, especially the lower body.  I couldn't walk.

CHAIRPERSON: How much time did you spend in hospital?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: I was in for 2 weeks.

CHAIRPERSON: And when you were discharged what happened to you?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: A police van came to collect me and took me to Church Street, where I was asked to give a statement.  They were not actually asking me they were telling me about a statement that was readily prepared and which stated that you had gone to town to go and kill the Whites and were armed and were sent there by Matsitsi.

CHAIRPERSON: Who was Matsitsi?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: Matsitsi was a famous bus driver.

CHAIRPERSON: At this time, how old were you?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: I was 15 years old.

CHAIRPERSON: Were you still at school?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: Yes, I was.

CHAIRPERSON: Then could you continue with your studies?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: No, that whole year I was at home, then the following year I went back to school.

CHAIRPERSON: Then the injury sustained, and you couldn't go to school.  Now how has it affected you?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: It really affected me a lot because even on cold days my whole body and my feet become stiff and I did try to go to the clinic but I became dissatisfied with the manner I was handled and I felt it was useless because they would hit me under the foot with the hammer and just give me the Panado pills,  then I just decided not to go there again.

CHAIRPERSON: When the other people were called to the Jubilee Hotel, were you one of them, did you receive any
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amount?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: Yes, I did.

CHAIRPERSON: What requests do you perhaps have to this Commission?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: Firstly, I would like to say my wish is that this Commission should get the amounts that the people were given for compensation and also investigate how much money was actually given to the lawyers because I have a belief that the lawyers who were handling these cases decided to take the bulk of the money because one Coloured man called Elton promised that after five years he was going to again come back and give us more money, and then last year I made an attempt to meet him but to no avail.

CHAIRPERSON: What was the name of this lawyer, who said after five years he would give you some more money?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: That was Elton.

CHAIRPERSON: : Is there any additional information you may be having?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: Hearing from other people I hear that all of us, we are not enjoying good health and if there is any way, I wish we could be provided with some medical aid so that whilst waiting for whatever we could at least be able to have some assistance so as to consult doctors.

CHAIRPERSON: Is there any other thing you would like to say?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: I would say that is all, thank you.

CHAIRPERSON: Is there anything else anyone would like to ask Mr Maseti?

MAPULE RAMASHALA: On the first page of Mr Fikile Nkobese's statement, line 3 from the bottom, and on Mr Maseti's statement no.4.  Could we clarify in Mr Maseti's statement
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it says, "I joined the group and later we decided to walk on foot proceeding to Kwanubushle."  In Mr Nkobese's statement there is a question that is asked, "why were buses and taxis off-loaded and turned back leaving people in a trap?"  Could we get a clarification on that?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: Could you please repeat the question?

CHAIRPERSON: Dr Ramashala is asking and referring to Mr Nkobese's statement that he mentioned that the people were asked to alight from buses and taxis, now she wants to know what was the reason for that, for people therefore to have to walk all the way and in your statement you say you joined the people who were walking to Kwanubushle.  Now could you give us a full picture as to why the people had to alight from the buses?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: When I joined the people at the square where the people were going to board the buses, there were no buses there, there were no taxis there, but there was one casper that was driving around and trying to disperse the people.  Then people took a decision to walk to Kwanubushle and then we got united and we held hands so that the oncoming traffic should be able to pass by.  We were singing.  There was this hippo still driving past and back.  It kept on doing that until we got to Mittas store and this casper drove past and parked next to the Seventh Adventist church and was about to go uphill.  There were hippos, there were some police vans that were parked along the road.
 As we were going down they blocked the road in the form of a "V" here on the road.  That is where I saw this Rastafarian and I heard a voice, a loud command that we should stop and we stopped but we were still chanting.  Then I saw this Rastafarian advancing to the policemen and 
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thereafter I heard the shooting, loud sounds of guns shooting.

CHAIRPERSON: Do you actually say that these people found themselves having to walk all the way to Kwanubushle because the police commanded that they should get off the buses and then you took that decision that you should walk to Kwanubushle, is it like that?

ZIXOLISILE MATTHEWS MASETI: No, on my arrival, I would say, I don't know perhaps whether this could have happened before I came there but on my arrival there, this is what I saw as I have explained earlier on.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you, Mr Maseti.