Human Rights Violation Hearings — Louis Trichardt — 1997-04-09

THOMAS MANTHATA: You are now in ANC.  I do not know whether this would be a difficult question, do you think that in a country there should be more than one party?  Do you think that in a country there should be more than one political party?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: Well I think it has to be one.

THOMAS MANTHATA: It has to be one.  What do you think of the one party?  What do you think will it mean to the people?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: Politically a one party state, it means that most of the people would be in favour of it according to the development that it would have made then.

THOMAS MANTHATA: But at this time in Vendaland you wanted more than one party, there was the National Venda Party, whatever you call it and then the VIP.  Why didn't you, at that time, didn't you believe in one party?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: Could you repeat the question.

THOMAS MANTHATA: My question is, now you say you believe in a state, in a Government that has one party.  Right?   And yet at that time, you were fighting that there should be two parties.  Okay, do not worry if you do not do the question.

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: Well, during that time, if there were two.  Well, of course they were recognised, but no, they were aspiring for different goals.  Whichever party reached the goal was going to be the one in leadership.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Yes, but this time you seem not to believe in that statement that you are making.  Because now you say you believe in one party.

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: Yes.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Okay, no further questions.  I hand over to the Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: Dr Randera.

DR RANDERA: Ms Nengovhela (speaker's mike is not on), sorry.  Ms Nengovhela, can you please tell us what happened to your husband, if the opposition did this to you did they leave your husband alone?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: At that time my husband was working in town.

DR RANDERA: So he was working in Johannesburg or in?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: Yes, he was working in Johannesburg.

DR RANDERA: Was it also common to, were there other people who were also assaulted and humiliated as you were, at the time who supported the opposition party?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: At that time the people of the National Party were only prepared to humiliate the people from other organisations.

DR RANDERA: But were there other people who were humiliated besides yourself in the village that you lived in, or were you the only person who voted for that party?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: I am not the only person.

DR RANDERA: Right.  I just want to understand.  You were taken to the chief's kraal, you said.  So were the chiefs supporting the opposition party at the time and recognised that party as the only important party?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: The chief, Mr Timoze?

DR RANDERA: Well that chief and other chiefs in the area as well.

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: It is this chief who made it possible that we were humiliated because he was in the National Party.

DR RANDERA: Thank you very much.

CHAIRPERSON: Dr Ally.

RUSSELL ALLY: Ms Nengovhela, when you were speaking you said that these two parties had different aims and objectives, the Venda National Party and the Venda Independent People's Party, can you tell us what the difference was, what the different aims and objectives were of these two parties?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: Could you please repeat the question.

RUSSELL ALLY: What was different about these parties, the Venda National Party and the Venda Independent People's Party?  How were they different from each other?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: The difference was there because the VIP was fighting for the people not to be humiliated and  that we must be independent, not to live under the aapartheid.

RUSSELL ALLY: If I can just try and understand.  Are you saying that the Venda Independent People's Party wanted independence for Venda, or is that what you say?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: What I know is that the VIP was fighting for stability and liberation and peace so that we can live with peace and no segregation.  So that who is in this position or this one rich or not.

RUSSELL ALLY: And the Venda National Party?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: From what I have experienced is that since that the National Party was that we must remain suffering.  Because the people who were sent were not working.  Most of them who, some of them are now the policemen, some of them were given better positions by that time after doing that crime to us.

CHAIRPERSON: Shonisani, you say in your statement that you were attacked because you voted for the VIP party how did they know you voted for VIP, because under this new Democratic Government we have secret ballots and nobody can know which party you have voted for?  How did they know that you had voted for the VIP party?

SHONISANI NENGOVHELA: During that time there were rallies in which we were going to the VIP rallies.  During elections, the election entrance, there were National Party people and the VIP people aand when we get inside for elections we have to mention the name of the person we are electing.

CHAIRPERSON: We are sorry for the humiliation you experienced and we thank you so much for coming here.  But I think at the end of the day you must be very proud that since our democratic elections of 1994 we are now striving for a culture of free and fair elections and a culture of political tolerance.  So all your efforts during those hard days were not in vain.  Thank you very much for coming.