Amnesty Hearings — Nelspruit — 1999-02-05

MR WILLS: Yes and when you were on your way you planned exactly how to do it and it was agreed or it was decided that Mr Mbambo would actually do the actual killing, is that right?

MONDLI NGXONGO: That is correct.

MR WILLS: My instructions are that Mr Mbambo at no other stage performed any operations with you or performed any operations in the Durban South Region, would you agree with that?

MONDLI NGXONGO: In my knowledge yes it's like that, he never worked with me.

MR WILLS: You mentioned in your evidence that the main duties of the hit squads was to attack ANC and disrupt their activities, do you recall that?

MONDLI NGXONGO: Yes I do.

MR WILLS: Now there's been evidence before the Amnesty Committee that basically that the hit squads operated in two ways and I want you to comment on this evidence.  The first way was that there would be specific targets that would be identified and the hit squads would be given specific orders to eliminate those targets.  Do you agree with that?

MONDLI NGXONGO: That is correct.

MR WILLS: But there was another way, there was a way that was directed at terrorising ANC communities where hit squads were given instructions to go in sometimes with other members of the IFP youth, sometimes on their own and just attack ANC communities indiscrimately.  Can you comment on that?

MONDLI NGXONGO: Yes that is correct.

CHAIRPERSON: Your comment is based on what, how do you know that this is how the hit squad operated?

MONDLI NGXONGO: I was a member of hit squad, I knew this and there were times where we were told that we should attack specific or particularly ANC members and sometimes we would be told that since ANC and IFP were fighting and in rural areas it's known that some areas they are stronghold ANC and some areas are stronghold IFP and we will sent that we should go and attack the ANC stronghold areas and we will kill indiscriminately.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you Mr Wills.

MR WILLS: Thank you Chairperson.
	Just briefly, you indicated that you got your firearm which you indicated was a 9 mm, my instructions are it was a 9 mm parabellum from the collection of firearms that the eSikhawini hit squad had, do you recall that?

MONDLI NGXONGO: That is correct.

MR WILLS: And my instructions are further that you also got your bullet proof vest from the very same source?

MONDLI NGXONGO: That is correct.

MR WILLS: And where did you take these - sorry, what were these firearms contained in, can you remember?

MONDLI NGXONGO: They had trunks which they brought from college and everything was in those trunks.

MR LAX: Sorry Mr Wills, he mentions college.  Which college?  What do you mean by college?

MONDLI NGXONGO: As a KwaZulu Police where he trained to be a policeman, in other words police training college and they used to give them trunks which had everything inside.

MR LAX: Where was that college?

MONDLI NGXONGO: Police Training College in KwaZulu Natal.

MR LAX: No, I was asking you where was it, do you know where it was situated, which town?

MONDLI NGXONGO: No, all I know is that it's in Ulundi, I don't know where.

MR WILLS: There's only one discrepancy between your version and Mr Mbambo's version and I'm obliged to put that discrepancy to you.  That involves the second attempted murder person, Mr Mbambo was of the view that you shot that person but your evidence yesterday was clear that you didn't discharge a firearm.  Now if my memory serves me correctly on perusal of the police docket in that matter the second attempted murder victim was injured outside of the premises of the shop.  Do you know if that is true or not?

MONDLI NGXONGO: That's not true.  This I was told about it when they came to arrest me but according to my knowledge it is not true because outside there was no gunfire.

MR WILLS: My instructions are to indicate to you that my client might have been mistaken in his assumption in that regard that you shot this person.

CHAIRPERSON: What's the point of that Mr Wills, is there any point?

MR WILLS: Well I must just put that we've given clear evidence before and I don't want this witness, I don't think it's fair for this witness, for us to sustain that if that isn't our position, I think he must know exactly what our view is but I'll save that for argument.

CHAIRPERSON: I think you save that for argument, it's not something that you can put to the witness to comment on.

MR WILLS: Yes thank you Chairperson.
	I want to now turn to the activities after you were imprisoned and what occurred in the prison in relation to you completing your amnesty application.  You gave evidence yesterday that there was considerable political pressure placed upon you and other IFP inmates in regard to the process of completing the amnesty application forms and specifically you were under pressure not to disclose the names of persons and particularly IFP leadership who were implicated in these acts, is my understanding correct?

MONDLI NGXONGO: That is correct.

MR WILLS: Now obviously at the time you were in prison there was a process going on outside of prison whereby Mbambo, Mkhize and Hlongwane and others, Dalakolo Luthuli, had given evidence whereby certain members of the IFP leadership had been exposed, are you aware of that?

MONDLI NGXONGO: Yes.

MR WILLS: Now these IFP leaders who came to visit you in prison and I specifically refer to Captain Hlengwa and Nicky Brits, did they make any mention or comment to you in any way about the disclosures made by Mbambo and others?

MONDLI NGXONGO: Yes they did, that they did tell us that Mbambo and others had already disclosed the names.

MR WILLS: What was their attitude?

MONDLI NGXONGO: Prisoners were negative towards this thing and we were told that - we have a committee in prison, we have one committee for ANC and the other one for IFP.  There's one member of an ANC or prisoner who came to know that Mbambo, Hlongwane and Mkhize, since they've already revealed the names they must be killed or injured or attacked in prison since they've already revealed this, they were supposed to be attacked by IFP members.

MR WILLS: Who was suggesting that this should be done?

MONDLI NGXONGO: Mr Hlongwane, Nicky Brits, they were not around since they were at Empangeni, they were going to appear before the TRC in Richards Bay, that's when they came to tell us this.

MR WILLS: Sorry, I just want clarity on this.  Are you saying that it was Hlongwane and Nicky Brits who gave essentially instructions for Mbambo and crew to be killed while Mbambo and crew were away testifying at Richard's Bay?

MONDLI NGXONGO: That is correct but he warned us that we should be careful because they were dangerous.

CHAIRPERSON: Mr Wills, can we get clarity on that?  I didn't understand his earlier evidence to have meant that Captain Hlongwane and Nicky Brits had given any kind of instructions to get Mr Mbambo and others killed?

MR WILLS: Well that was my understanding but possibly that's what I tried to clear up but ...[intervention]

CHAIRPERSON: Yes, it's definitely not my understanding from his evidence.

MR LAX: I thought it was the prison committee that told them that that's what they were going to do?  The translation was bad, the translation sounded like it was the leader of the ANC
Committee who got wind of this information but it was a bit unclear.  Maybe we can just clear that up?

MR WILLS: This instruction or this information that you received in regard to the desire to kill Mbambo and crew, where did that come from?

MONDLI NGXONGO: Mr Hlongwane and Nick.

CHAIRPERSON: What did Mr Hlongwane and Nicky Brits say about Mbambo and others specifically what did he say?

MONDLI NGXONGO: After the television ...[intervention]