Human Rights Violation Hearings — Worcester — 1996-06-24

DR BORAINE: The next witness whom we now  call to the witness stand 
Zandisile Ntsomi and I'd be grateful if he would come forward.

WENDY ORR: Mr Ntsomi, will you stand to take the oath please? 
ZANDISILE NTSOMI Duly sworn states

WENDY ORR: May I call you Zandisile?

MR NTSOMI: Yes.

WENDY ORR: We've come to know each other over the last few days.

MR NTSOMI: Thank you.

WENDY ORR: Zandisile I know you were at Nation Bahume's funeral and I know it must have been difficult for you to listen to that story again.

MR NTSOMI: Yes.

WENDY ORR: And now you going to tell us your own story.  It was around the same time 1985 in Zwelethemba, a time of State of Emergency, curfews -  the township being blockaded and intense police activity.
Can you  tell us about the events which happened to you starting on that evening 12th October 1985?

MR NTSOMI: I will start by saying what  - I would start by stating on what happened on the 12th or I'll start the day before I was shot.
 There was a funeral in the location.  It was one of the comrades who was shot and dead, his name was Thomas Segolo.  So it was his funeral and it was on Friday.  The situation in the location was not stable.  There was a tense situation I would explain it that way.  The youth was not stable either.   More especially in the youth although it involved the whole community.  And then on Saturday there were protests among the location because as it was that tension people were not that much happy -  there were many things that happened as Mamma Bahume has stated before.  Some of the youth were shot dead and some were shot and injured.
So on the 12th of October I was also shot - the year was 1985 - it was a tar road where I was.  After the policemen shot me I was in someone else's yard,  I was visiting my friend called Zimphiwe - he was staying there.
After that incident they beat me up, they were kicking me, insulting and assaulting us.  They dragged me, pulling me out of this yard  taking me into the police van.   What  I can state that not at that moment I was taken to hospital - I was bleeding heavily - I can't even mention how the way I was bleeding.  They couldn't even take the opportunity to take me to hospital, they were taking rounds around the location.  Sometimes they decided to stop their van chatting to each other, having that negotiations that I couldn't  understand and take their  exact meaning of what they were trying to say.
They used to use the torches to light me.  At times they used to point their guns at me,  so I don't know what was behind all this motion.  I knew - the  only thing I knew that they were the perpetrators, the culprits.  They can do anything because they've already shot me.
At a long last I thought they were bored - tired that's my thinking  they decided to something because at first I couldn't understand  why they did not take me to hospital.  They took me to Eben Donges Hospital.  I arrived at the hospital and they put me on a stretcher.  As I was laying there on that stretcher I was under police guard.  They asked me to wait there for an ambulance.  They told me that I would stay there for a long while because the ambulance were not around - hopefully they were busy in the location taking some others who were also shot.
At a long run an ambulance came - I asked for some water from the one of the guards - police guards and this police guard told me he is not allowed to give me water.  He was told not to give me anything.  After a while or after some time as the ambulance came it took me to Tygerberg Hospital.  It was around about in the morning or it was still midnight around ten.  Around about  6 o'clock I was taken to Tygerberg Hospital.  When we arrived there I was admitted.
I  woke up in the morning and a  doctor woke me up - the time was around about 6.  I had a watch I believe so, it was still on my wrist.   I noticed that the time was 6 o'clock in the morning.    I was awoken by the doctor and he told me that I was badly injured and he told me that they would try their best as doctors.  They will try and examine me up to their utmost best.
They were going to take me to the X-ray first and they did as they say - as they said.  I was taken back to the ward again.  After a while - it was just a short period this doctor came back again and he told me that guy you are badly injured.  And we have noticed that there is nothing we can do about you.  The only thing we can do to you is to amputate your leg.  So that thing must be done as soon as possible.  Can you see the time now and I said yes, and he told me that around 10 this morning your leg must be amputated.  So the operation must be through already or else if we can wait up until ten - there is a possibility that you won't live, you can die.   Or else if you can take a risk and tell ourselves  that we would try our best and examine your leg and do all our best we can do to your leg, it will affect the whole body of yours and you will get sick.  
I had no other option and I was forced and bound to accept the doctors perception.  I said if it's the way  you are telling me it's okay with me, I have no problem -   can you please bring me the forms - I will fill in the forms.  I filled them  and after that I told them that before you can  do anything can they do me a favour and phone my family at home because I find out that my parents are not aware of what's going on.
I gave the doctor the phone number, my neighbours phone number and  I told him to try and phone my parents and he did so.  So my parents was the time they only get the message that I was in Tygerberg Hospital.  They were not aware all this time.   They even - they came as soon as they could.  They were not allowed to talk to me - they said they were not allowed so it was that situation - because it was time for me to go to the theatre.  They were told to come later.
The operation was done to me - my leg was amputated and it was okay - that was Sunday the day was the 13th October 1985.  I stayed there the whole - the whole day on Sunday under a drip.  And then on Monday, it was about lunch time at the hospital they brought me some food.  My face was swollen because the policemen had beaten me, had kicked me,  so that was the result of their assault and the way they dragged me from where I was lying in that yard.  It was very painful so it was - my swollen was resulted from that.
I tried to walk slowly - I am sorry I tried to eat because I was very hungry I couldn't eat for the past two days.  This policemen forced me to eat because after you finish I am taking you - I can't remember whether I asked him whether - I asked him a question about where are we going to because I knew that I am going to the police cells.  And I had no option so I can't  even remember that I asked him a question.
I try - I forced myself to eat.  After I finished my meal a nurse came along and brought me a wheelchair, took me from  the bed to the wheelchair - they brought two packets of pills, put them in my pocket.  By that time I was wearing - I would say it was a night gown -  a hospital night gown and then op top I had some - I had the other thing on top  like a gown.  There was nothing I had underneath, I had  no shoes on, no clothes on.  I had no idea what happened to my clothes but when I came into Worcester I heard that they had taken my clothes home.
They drove me out of the hospital - I was on the wheel chair, put me in the police van - I was operated yesterday,  remind you.  And then the following men [intervention]

WENDY ORR: [indistinct] get the sequence of events clear in my mind.  You had the operation on the Sunday.  Your leg was amputated above the knee.

MR NTSOMI: Exactly.

WENDY ORR: Which is a serious operation and the doctor discharged you the very next day, is that correct?   And he discharged you knowing that you were going back to the police cells, not to your home?