Amnesty Hearings — Boksburg — 1998-03-09

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: (sworn states)

MR MAPOMA: Where do you reside?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: At 6, Leleke.

MR MAPOMA: Did you reside at that place during December 1993?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Yes I used to reside at that place.
Is that zone 6?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: We call Mololeke 6, we call it - we refer to it as 6 and when you would try to stop the taxi you put up a sign of 6.

MR MAPOMA: Is that the same place where you resided in 1993?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: That is true.

MR MAPOMA: Do you recall the incidents of 7th December 1993 which are the subject of this hearing?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Yes I do remember.

MR MAPOMA: Now on that day where were you?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I arrived on the 6th at Mololeke.  Often, times I would spend my time at my mother's place at Salumo.

MR MAPOMA: Now on the following morning were you at that place?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Please repeat your question, which place?

MR MAPOMA: At your home at Mololeke.

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I was at home the following day on the 7th.

MR MAPOMA: Now were you approached by any persons on that day, at home?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I will explain it this way.  When myself and my friend were still sleeping - Amos - he's an Albino.

CHAIRPERSON: What is his name, sorry?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Amos is his name.  I don't know his surname.  We heard knocks at the door and Amos was awoken up and said I mustn't open the door and when I woke up I looked through the window and I saw a group of people outside wearing blankets.  I think there were about more than twenty in number if I'm not mistaken.  I heard them kicking the door, shouting open, open.  I opened the door in spite of what Amos was saying, insisting that we shouldn't open the door.   As I opened the door the first person who came in was Mr Ndabe but I did not know his surname at the time and when I was looking around, still around the same group, I saw Oscar as a person who I could identify and Armoed as well and Manzini.

CHAIRPERSON: Is Manzini present here?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I saw him - he was sitting right at the back.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes.  Okay?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I dressed up, I put on my pair of trousers.  As I was trying to look around for my T-shirt, I could not even locate and find my T-shirt because Mr Ndabe, the one who stormed in first in the house as I was asking him as to why people were just coming in, rushing in in the morning, coming to fetch me, where were they taking us?  He said I should not ask him anything.

CHAIRPERSON: And what did he do?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: He had a spear with him - he stabbed me with that spear on my arm, right hand arm.

MR MAPOMA: Are you saying Mr Ndabe stabbed you with that spear on the arm?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: That's exactly what I'm saying.

MR MAPOMA: Then what did they do?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I gathered that these people were there and in a spirit of war.  I could not even get an opportunity to find my T-shirt.  They instructed us that we should get out of the house, they were there to fetch us.

MR MAPOMA: So did you get out of the house?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: You see the shack had only two rooms.  It was only a bedroom and a kitchen.  I left Amos in the bedroom, I did not even explain to them that I was with Amos in the house.

MR MAPOMA: So did they take you away?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Mr Ndabe proceeded through the bedroom where Amos was sleeping.  I think when he found Amos he woke him up - I don't know what happened subsequently whether he was assaulted or what because when I tried to ask Oscar as a person I knew as to what was happening, since I was lost and Oscar said I should not throw in questions to him and told others that this very one, his father is a Zulu and he reside in Zonge, Kobese is his name.

CHAIRPERSON: Okay.  How old were you at the time?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I was seventeen years old.

MR MAPOMA: Sorry, just before that, were you a member of any political organisation in Mololeke?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Yes, I was a Youth League of ANC.

MR MAPOMA: Okay, you were just saying you don't know what happened of Amos, then what did they do?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: You see there were no fences or the fence around the yards of Mololeke shacks, Mr Ndabe was the one pushing me to go out of the shack and we exited at the back of the shack.  I saw Amos as well out following us as well - I was in the front.

MR MAPOMA: Yes?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: The only word I heard was that Amos will be assaulted and Amos was assaulted by knopkierrie and they said an Albino cannot see at the night, the sight of an Albino at night is very poor - he can't even see anything and he was released.  He went back.

MR MAPOMA: Now did they go along with you?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Yes they went along with me.  The one was, next to me, was Oscar and then Mr Ndabe.

MR MAPOMA: And where to did they take you?

MR MAPOMA: I was residing in Block D so we left Block D from Block F.

CHAIRPERSON: Now, from Block F?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: From Block F - We left Block D, we went to Block F.  Mr Ndabe was shouting as we're walking saying anyone who knows he is a dog patrolling he should come and see what that dogs have done.

MR MAPOMA: You arrived at Block F and then what happened?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: We met about six people who were keeping guard at Bulelwa's body that was lying there.

CHAIRPERSON: Did anyone respond to the call by Mr Sonti?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I had no one responding.

CHAIRPERSON: Was there any indication to you what is it that they were referring to as has been done by the dogs that were patrolling?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I did not know because I was at home sleeping.  They also took me from my house and I was at home sleeping.

CHAIRPERSON: Did they tell you what the dogs had done?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: You mean them?  No they did not say anything to me.

MR MAPOMA: Now what happened at Block F?  You said that you saw six people who were keeping guard at Bulelwa's corpse?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: That is true.  When we arrived at the site they handed me over to some man, you know it's not even a man he's a youngster.

MR MAPOMA: Yes?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: They said he should take me with to a shack and keep me there.

MR MAPOMA: Were you taken to a shack?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Yes I was taken to a shack.

MR MAPOMA: And when you arrived at the shack was there anyone?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Yes there were others.  When I arrived at the shack I found Mtabang already captured, I trying to recall the other - Jacob and Boetie.  Boetie is now deceased.

MR MAPOMA: ...[inaudible]

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: I don't know.  They were tied with a wire the three of them together on their feet and hands with a piece of wire.

INTERPRETER: The speaker's microphone is not on.

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Yes they tied their hands at the back the three of them together and their feet as well, the same pattern.

MR MAPOMA: Were you also tied?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: When I arrived there, the one that was sent to take me to the shack had a piece a wire with and tied my feet and my hands at the back.

MR MAPOMA: Yes?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: And they left us alone in the shack because they were all over the show outside and the members of the community had already gathered as well.  On that note, I asked the others who were already captured as to what is happening.  They said they were captured at about 4 a.m. they don't know as to what was happening, they were also lost and people were arriving and peeping through the windows and asking: 'hey, you boys, what have you done?'  I told them that I was fetched from my shack, I don't even know what was happening.

MR MAPOMA: Were those people who were peeping through the door members of any organisation?

JABULANI AMON MTWALO: Those were just members of the community, ordinary members of the community.

CHAIRPERSON: Did anyone tell those people what you alleged to have done?