Amnesty Hearings — Boksburg — 1998-03-03

CHAIRPERSON: Let's me just remind you of what you were busy with.  You were describing to us the events surrounding the death of Bulelwa.  Sepo Baloi had been requested to go and seek assistance from the Red Cross for the transportation of Bulelwa's corpse.  That's where you were.

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: Yes, it's like that.  As I have already explain, Mr Mokwena came with Mr Ndlovo, sent by the youth to come and apologise, that they have an urgent meeting that they had to attend at the time that we had agreed upon.  We had to wait for their response.  Before Mr Mokwena arrived there seemed to be a whistle sound in block F.
	We rushed to check and when we arrived there there were two girls blowing the whistle saying: "Rush, we have been called by the self-defence unit".  If I am not mistaken these two girls, one of them is Absemia Mbekwesi and the other one is known as Nkosi.  These are the people who were blowing the whistle.  When we arrived at the scene we wanted to know what went wrong and they said this is how we call the members of the Youth League.  We have an urgent meeting that we are going to hold together with the defence unit.
	We were surprised to see girls because we did not see girls on the previous occasions.  I did see them during the day, they were the people who were holding a meeting 500 away in block F.  They did not come as I have already explained.  What happened was that Mr Mokwena himself arrived and Mr Ndlovo.
	Mr Sepo Baloi, Ndondolo went for about - they went for about 8 metres, minutes, after they had left for those minutes together with this other guy in whose car they were to travel, it was indicated that people who owned cars should help when there is trouble even if they were not patrolling themselves but if there is a problem or an emergency they should please help and assist. 
	He agreed, he took Ndaba into his car, Ndondolo and Sepo Baloi.  They left and they were gone for about 8 minutes or so and we then heard a gun fire in block A or block C to block B.  Those places follow each other in that pattern.  We were standing there as the self-defence unit and the community of Moleleki Extension 2  as Bulelwa's corpse was lying there.
	The night went on without them coming back, that is Ntjebe and Sepo Baloi.  As time went on almost at dawn, still they had not come back.  The comrades who were to go to work were released to go and sleep.  I rushed with comrade accused number 7 who is apply for amnesty, that is Oscar Motlokwa, to go to block E and I went to block D.
	On getting into my blankets, it was round about 2 o'clock if I'm not mistaken or after 2.  I heard another gun fire and a whistle was blown, the very same whistle that I have already spoke about as a sign indicating an emergency.  As I was putting my shoes on there was a knock on the door, that was comrade accused number 7, Oscar: "Comrade I have come to inform you that the youth are burning Blanko".  
	We rushed past the comrades who were standing guard, watching over Bulelwa's corpse.  We rushed to comrade Blanko's place.  I just want to explain something.  Blanko's real name is Malusi Jackson Kiyana.  Certain community members stayed behind at Bulelwa's corpse, some rushed to the place where the shack was burning.  
	As we were extinguishing the fire at Mr Blanko's place or Mr Kiyana ...[intervention]

MR MAPOMA: Is that, whose ID is that?  Whose ID is that in your hands?

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: Blanko's.  This ID belongs to Blanko, Kiyana, K-I-Y-A-N-A.

MR MAPOMA: Do you want to show it to the Committee?  Can you pass it?  With your permission Mr Chair.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes, you first went to the spot where you had left Bulelwa's corpse, right?

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: We went there with comrade Oscar who is the one that brought the message to me that the whistle is blowing, from which direction and where we should go.

CHAIRPERSON: Did you go there?

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: Yes, we did go there.

CHAIRPERSON: Were there any persons there when you arrived?

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: Yes, there were other people who were standing guard there at the corpse and the other defence unit members had already gone to some other place at Blanko's house trying to extinguish the fire.

CHAIRPERSON: So the other members of the SDU had already left for Blanko's house?

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: Yes.  When we got to block F as I was coming from block D, we got there when they just left rushing to the scene as the whistle had indicated that they should.
	We extinguished the fire, we did manage to after a long time and after a long struggle.  We found Blanko leaning against the wall of his shack outside.  Outside there were AK47 bullets and 9mm ammunition that was used and some were not used and we also got this pass book,
ID and the other part of his trouser and also cartridges outside.
	As the person who owned or who heard the tuck shop, things like tinned stuff, cigarettes and paraffin, tinned stuff were stolen already.  Paraffin was used to douse the house and they set the house alight.  After we managed to extinguish the fire we asked as to what was happening, why was this done.  As Comrade Oscar had already explained people who managed to come and show up were Tusanang or Tusang Rigarde ...[intervention]

CHAIRPERSON: Wait a minute.  Oscar said the people that he managed to identify, is that right?

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: That's correct.  It was Tusang Rigarde and Vips Motloung, the others did not show up or did not come.

MR MAPOMA: Did you identify ...[intervention]

CHAIRPERSON: No, no, no.  He did not say: "the other people did not come", what he said was that he could not identify the others, is that what you say?  Did you say people you saw there were Tusang and Vips?

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: What I would like - the other people, Oscar did not know them so he couldn't identify them.  As I've already explained the ones that he was sure of was Tusanang and Vips and the others he did not know, in other words there were not only two people who were present there.
	After the fire was extinguished we passed Bulelwa's corpse and we reported to the community which was present and other members of the SD unit that surrounded the corpse that Blanko was already burnt and died.  The people who were seen were comrade Oscar and Vips and Tusang or Tusanang.
	We got here before Ntjebe, Ntjebe was not seen yet with comrade Sepo Baloi.  We therefore thought to go there on our own to see the Red Cross as it was dawn then.  In the morning actually, after 3a.m. we left other comrades next to the corpse of Bulelwa.  At comrade Blanko's house the door was closed and the neighbours were there sitting outside.
	As we were between block B and block C we just heard gunfire Mr Chairman.  There was this word that was saying: "Here are these dogs, attack gentlemen or attack gents".  As the comrade has already explained that he was the one firing the gunshots - who heard the gunshots, the gun.  
	There was a shack who is not existing now for three weeks.  In 1993 there was a shoe repairer at that shack repairing shoes and they got out of that shack, they ran down the road towards the farm.  We chased them ...[intervention]

CHAIRPERSON: You were passing between blocks C and D?

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: That was the route and the route was between block C and block D.

CHAIRPERSON: ...[No English translation]

ZOLA NXEBA MICHAEL SONTI: That is true.  They were running away and they got off from the shack running away, shooting at the same time, shooting at us.

CHAIRPERSON: ...[inaudible] running away, were they running away from you or coming to you shooting, what were they doing exactly?