Special Hearings — Health Sector Hearings — 1997-06-17

IVY GCINA: Thank you Commission.  On the 12th of June 1987, as Sheila has already said, we were taken to the reception.  We were told that we were going to stay for a longer time in prison because the state of emergency was not disbanded.  Mrs Elda was very sick.  When she got to our cell she was a confused person.  You would give her an apple and she would not take it.  She was very ill.  She asked me for how long are we going to stay there.  I said Elda we must wait, it might happen that we might die in prison.  Anything can happen when you are in the hands of the enemy. We have to wait and we must only pray to God.
 On the 13th Elda then became very sick.  In the morning we would be asked about our complaints and we complained about the state of health of Elda.  We requested for her to get treatment.  Captain Nel then agreed.  He said that she was going to be taken to a doctor.  
 When Elda was taken to the doctor we requested someone to accompany her because Elda could not even tell her name.  The doctor then did not agree.  They said that a person should speak for herself.  She was taken to a doctor, she then came back to the cell.  We asked for treatment for her.  She would be given a chicken thigh, samp with too much salt, there was no special treatment or special diet for her as she was diabetic.  They were eating normal food just like us.
 Elda then urinated herself.  We reported this to Captain Nel because first of all in our cell we were 14.  It doesn't matter how small it is but there were supposed to be 14 prisoners in each cell, we could not even sleep in that cell.  We then asked for Elda to be taken to an outside doctor because in the cell we had a nurse, Mrs Fazi, she asked for a urine bag for Elda because she was urinating herself.  
 They took her out of our cell.  We found out that they said we were not happy because we were together with Elda.  That was Captain Nel and a warder by the name of April, a Black man.  We got a report that we complained that we were not happy because Elda was with us.
 Elda Bani was taken.  After a long time I went to Captain Nel in the office, I asked him where they took Elda he said that she was in Uitenhage in hospital.  I asked him whether he was sure, he said yes.  
 After a few days Elda came back at night together with Captain Nel.  Captain Nel opened the cell and we all woke up.  We saw Elda, she looked beautiful at that time. She said that the police had beaten her up.  She thought that she was just confused because she looked well to us.  We gave her food.  While she was still eating she urinated herself.  Sheila took out her gown and she was naked at that time.  She had nothing on except for the pink prison gown.  When Sheila took off this gown I saw blood in the left corner of this gown.  I said to them Sheila this gown has blood.  When Sheila took her we saw that her back was injured.  But before this she was not like that.  We asked her what happened, she said that the Police had beaten her up.  We asked whether she went to the hospital she said she did not know but what she knew was that she was beaten up.
 We washed her and dressed her and gave her our clothes.  She slept and the following morning Captain Nel came.  I showed Captain Nel that Sheila was beaten up and her gown had blood.  Nel said that she must go to the hospital.  We said that there should be someone to accompany her to hospital.  Nel said that he would accompany her to hospital.  After that she was given pills. We asked what for, but nobody told us, but we could see that these were pain tablets.
 We tried to talk to ourselves because we wanted her to be treated.  Nel said that she was going to be taken to hospital. Elda then left us.  I then asked all the detainees to gather in a hall so that we can talk about this matter.  We were taken to this hall, all of us, we explained to other detainees that Elda was very ill.  When we came back Sheila was called and while we were still in our prison cell we could hear that Sheila was screaming.  At the time Sheila was together with Mrs Bani.  Mrs Bani could not even speak at that time.  We heard that afterwards.  
 As Sheila has already said they went to Uitenhage hospital. In hospital the doctors said that Sheila you are going to be admitted.  Sheila said that I am not sick, this woman is sick she has to be admitted, she was not speaking, she was not saying anything.  They came back late and she was taken to a single cell, she was in a coma.  Sheila asked Captain Nel that in prison as you said that - why are you keeping me with this person because she is in a coma and she could not speak.  Sheila's health then deteriorated also.
 Elda urinated herself and I was the one who was doing her washing.  At the time, on the day of her death, in the morning I asked Captain Nel if I could wash Elda's clothes.  He agreed and he brought me her clothes.  But on this day I found out that Elda has vomited.  I was very scared, I was confused, I did not know what was happening.  
 On the previous day Captain Nel came to our prison cell at night.  He took Peti Rose Lungu, Namsa September and he left with them.  We waited for these two but they did not come back.  They came back in the morning.  Peti Rose and Namsa September said that something has happened to Elda because they found out that there were men in Captain Nel's office and they asked them whether they knew Elda Bani, whether they knew what was wrong with Elda Bani, they had to answer all those questions.  I asked why they left, why they were asking you these questions because they were supposed to ask us, I told them that something happened to Elda.  They were scaring them.  I could feel that something had happened to Elda.
 In the morning I asked a prison warder for permission to go and see Captain Nel.  He told me that Captain Nel was very busy.  Sergeant Leech came, together with another policeman, but I've forgotten his name, I think he is preaching, they said that we have tried everything we could for Elda Bani's health but she has passed away.  We asked where was she, in hospital or here in prison?  They did not answer that question. 
 But what is important is that I asked to see Captain Nel.  I said that we were going to have a prayer on behalf of Elda Bani.  We met in one place as the detainees and we prayed for Elda Bani.  We were then supposed to report to the township about this. As the detainees of Cell 14 we discussed what to do.  I then said that comrades what we must do, when we are writing letters home we must tell these people.  When we have a visitor you are going to talk Xhosa and you are going to report this matter to this person.  We did this.  Fortunately Mrs Fazi had a visitor, her daughter-in-law.  We then reported this, and her daughter-in-law reported it to the township of the death of Elda Bani.  We reported this to the Black Sash too.  We then used the Black warders so they can investigate for us about the funeral arrangements.  We called Captain Nel and we requested to have a service for Elda Bani in prison.

GLENDA WILDSCHUT: Sorry, sorry before you go on to the funeral.  Could we perhaps just clarify some of the - a bit of the story.  While Mrs Bani was in the prison was she already on insulin, was she receiving insulin treatment before she came ...(intervention)

IVY GCINA: No they did not give her this treatment.

GLENDA WILDSCHUT: But before she was arrested she was receiving treatment?

IVY GCINA: Yes she was.  Before she was arrested she was being treated with insulin.  She was given this treatment by her doctor outside.  When she was arrested she took her treatment to prison and they took this treatment from her.

GLENDA WILDSCHUT: Right.  So she didn't receive any medication while she was in prison, no tablets no insulin injections?