Human Rights Violation Hearings — Duncan Village — 1996-09-23

UNKNOWN: Yes, I did meet that man Nkunzemnyama.  When they came to Westbank, they asked as to stand in a line, called us one by one and when it was my turn, they asked me to stand aside and asked me to get into a separate room and all this policemen assaulted me at the same time - for no reason, they wouldn't state why they were assaulting me.
 All that was said by this young man here was common 
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practice there and this is what was happening and it happened even to me.
 I was always the first person to be assaulted.  And he would always slap me with both hands and early in the morning, at four o'clock, he would wake us up and chase us and ask us to stand naked and run into the water and he would ask us to stand in a line and then they would again assault us on both hands until our hands were swollen.

MR SANDI: This Nkunzemnyama, did you actually get his real, true name?

UNKNOWN: No, I couldn't.  I've been trying to get hold of his true name, but I failed to.

MR SANDI: Have you ever heard why he was known as "Nkunzemnyama"?  Did he name himself or was - is this a name that was given to him.

UNKNOWN: That is how he praised himself whenever he would do all the evil things to us and he was very dark, very pitch black in complexion.

MR SANDI: At the time you were in Fort Glamorgan, did you ever appear in court?

UNKNOWN: Yes, we used to go to court only to find that the case was still under investigation, and we would be refused bail.

MR SANDI: Up to today Mr Mapisa, did you ever get to know who were the people you were accused of having killed?

UNKNOWN: No.  What helped us to get a release, because I think this was just a way of keeping us in cells - our lawyer Jeram, who used to go with Lalla was very useless.
 Then one other day we met Mr Siwisa, Hintsa Siwisa a layer, whom we decided should take the case, that is how we got some help.
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 And that is the time when this case was withdrawn.

MR SANDI: Now let's go on to this day you've mentioned in your statement in 1986 to 1988.  You say you were again detained under the  state of emergency?  What actually happened during this period of your detention?

UNKNOWN: In 1986 to 1988 I was detained under the  state of emergency.  During this period I can say I can mention that there was paid and hurt that I suffered.
 I fell sick and I was denied medical attention.  The only Doctor who was available at the time would just simply ask you whether you were a soccer player and if you would say you were not a soccer player, he would just say go and play soccer.  
 Then if you said you were a soccer player, he would say now relax for a week, so there was no medical treatment.
 Such that today I am very nervous.  I remember one other day when I was extremely nervous and we were in a cell, we were quite a big number locked in a cell - we could not even see each other.  The cells were just full and packed.
 And I could not get medical treatment at the time.  This Doctor gave me some pills that I can never forget, because as soon as I took them, I slept till morning and when I wanted to wake up, my whole body became very numb.
 I couldn't even shake my limbs and I had to lie down there.
 So that was the only treatment I got from this Doctor.  Except that he would tell - recommend that I should play soccer.

MR SANDI: Do you perhaps remember the name of this Doctor?

UNKNOWN: No, I don't remember his name - I have
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forgotten his name.

MR SANDI: In your statement you say Mr Mapisa, there was a time during your detention under the state of emergency, when you took fits?

UNKNOWN: Yes, I did go through that,  I took fits whilst in the cell.

MR SANDI: Was it your first time to take fits?

UNKNOWN: It was not the first time, but it started after all these incidents of torture, but no one cared about this state.  Because even when they assaulted me in Westbank and at Cambridge police station, I would again take a fit.
 But that did not bother them.

MR SANDI: By the way you say today if - can you read and concentrate?

UNKNOWN: No, I struggle to do that especially now.  Such that at this very moment, I feel slightly better because all along I've been having some problems to read.
 I would have to re-read before something gets into my mind.

MR SANDI: According to what I see, that your evidence or your story about this extreme torture is quite lengthy, I would ask you to explain how your health was affected by all this long time torture and detention.  Could you mention how you were affected?

UNKNOWN: I would say after these incidents from 1988 when the Ciskei Police detained me, which was the most evil time I've ever gone through.

MR SANDI: Now, are you referring to the time when you were at home and then some people with balaclavas came to your home?

UNKNOWN: Yes, that's the time.
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MR SANDI: Now, could you explain what actually happened on that day when these people snatched you from your home?

UNKNOWN: There was a knock at the door and that was the year I had just been released from detention.
 It was in December of the year and as I was sleeping, it was at five o'clock in the morning, there was a knock at the door and there was noise of some people talking.
 And I saw a group of about five people standing at the door and some others standing nearby.
 I asked why they were making such noises and what they wanted and they responded that they wanted me.  I asked who they were.
 Some of them were dressed in coats, I could not identify them so I asked them "who are you" and one of them said "you talk too much" and he punched me.
 And I was standing next to the door, I held him and pulled him into the room and we fought.
 Luckily because this room was very small, I managed to press him down and beat him up, then the others joined and they beat me with the bat of the firearm on the spinal cord and where there are kidneys.
 He hit me several times and I felt pain so I turned to face that other one.  And one other one tried to strangle me to an extent that I had a swelling here on the throat.
 I couldn't speak as a result of this attack and we moved on.

MR SANDI: Were there other people of your family who were there?

UNKNOWN: Yes, my mother was there.  My sister was there too.

MR SANDI: By the way, who were these people who did all this DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
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to you?

UNKNOWN: It became evident later on that these people were the police.  They took me to NU 1 police Station in Mdantsane, that is when I could identify them as police.

MR SANDI: Where were their cars parked at the time?

UNKNOWN: They were hidden from our house, they had parked the cars in one corner away from my home.  They took me and I walked bare footed to the place where they had parked their cars.

MR SANDI: You said these people who were in balaclavas, were policemen and they took you to NU 1 police station in Mdantsane?

UNKNOWN: Yes.

MR SANDI: What actually happened there, what questions did they pose to you there?

UNKNOWN: When we got there, they took me to a certain Mr Funani and he was delighted to see me, because they had been looking for me.
 And he asked me why I was burning the houses of the police in Mdantsane.  Then I said how do I know where these policemen live there, because I don't stay there.  
 Because I don't even visit Mdantsane, I don't even know any policeman from Mdantsane.  And then he said that I should tell the truth why I was burning these houses.
 So they took me into one room and that is where they assaulted me.

MR SANDI: How long were you there?