Human Rights Violation Hearings — Benoni — 1997-02-05

MS NYOKA: What I would say, to my knowledge, during his leadership nothing happened.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Even the Councillors did not feel
threatened or they were not threatened by any particular action, or rather the strength and the influence of his leadership?

MS NYOKA: What I would say is this, in fact Caiphus was never a leader as a Cosas member.   He was just a member.   So there was a fear because Cosas was of the view then that black local authority was used as a tool to oppress the black communities.
 So, it was something which we as blacks were not supposed to support, because it was something imposed on us by the white Government.  Then again it fought educational issues, like those of age limit, if you remember, because when there was this threat that if a child of a certain age, doing a lower standard that child should not be allowed at school.  So that was an issue that Cosas did not want.  They said everybody has the right to attend school, to be given that right irrespective of their age.
 And there were issues against such as those of corporal punishment.   Those were educational issued that Cosas were involved in.  
 So, I think the local Councillors then were threatened by those views of Cosas.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Before this tragic death Caiphus had never been dragged before the court accused of either terrorism, either you know, incitement and this and the other?

MS NYOKA: When in my statement, I have mentioned that in 1985 we were physically attacked, me and my father and the whole family, but we were, my father and myself were physically attacked by the ex-Mayor, Mr Tom Boy.   And one of the reasons that he attacked us was that his car was
stoned in a hall where there was a community meeting and he believed that one of those who stoned that car, was my brother.
 So, he came to home, he came to our home, looking for Caiphus and he attacked us as a family.  After that we presented that case, we sort of went to the police station to make a case of that incident, but instead of our case being taken that we were attacked and there was malicious damage to property, our house was stoned by him as well, our case was not taken instead, they were saying that we must bring Caiphus.  
 So he was arrested in 1985 and the charge there was public violence and arson, but in both cases he was acquitted in the sense that he was not there.   It appeared that the person in question, the person I am talking about, had a grudge on him, because what happened was that, in that meeting the meeting was rowdy and all in all, lights were switched off, everybody took different direction and the question was, how did you see this boy, because there were three of them accused of it?  This one, who threw a stone at your car, because there were many other boys there.  So how did you know in particular?  
 They could not, because even if they were responsible for the damage all the people who were there were responsible.
 So, another instance was that of public violence.   The police arrested Caiphus in a house and they said the charge was public violence and the question was, how can you arrest a person in a house and charge a person for public violence, because if a person is arrested for public violence you are arrested on the scene, where you are causing that public 
violence, so eventually the police agreed that they were given these names by certain people.  So they said, who are those people?
 Councillor Mtiba was called to witness and Councillor Lange who is now dead and the ex-Mayor Mr Tom Boya.   
 So these are the accounts that I can remember.

THOMAS MANTHATA: From the letter, written by dad, it seems he was very strong at that time.  What was dad doing at that time?

MS NYOKA: Can you repeat your question?

THOMAS MANTHATA: I say from the letter written by your father, it seems that he was very strong at the time.  What was he doing?

MS NYOKA: You mean may father was strong and then what was he doing at that time?   You mean my father?

THOMAS MANTHATA: Yes your father.

MS NYOKA: At the time of Caiphus death?

THOMAS MANTHATA: At the time of Caiphus death like he managed to get out and be shown those three students, if ever they were and so on.

MS NYOKA: In fact I must confess to this Commission that deep down in my heart I always believe that if Caiphus was not killed the way he was killed, probably my father would be alive.
 At the time of Caiphus death my father was still a very active man, very strong and he was a very good father.  He was working for the then Daveyton Town Council, as a Clerk at Daveyton Hostel.   So that was what he was doing.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Was all this ever taken to the court, to
the police, that is, was the death of Caiphus ever contested in court?

MS NYOKA: No.  What happened is that after the ruling at the inquest we did not see, or we did not have the direction now as to where to go, because the people that killed him were people of authority and now it was the very justice was protective of those people.   So it was just a wasteful effort at the end, because I think what was presented at that inquest, it was final that the Magistrate of that inquest court, did not see that case valuable to continue.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Did the three students who were in Caiphus's room that night ever give an account of how the police entered the house and started shooting?

MS NYOKA: You mean the three boys that were with him?

THOMAS MANTHATA: Yes.

MS NYOKA: What they related, I mentioned a little bit here, is that the police went straight to his room, hence all of us we could not go there.   He was killed whilst all of us were in our respective bedrooms, but when all are able to go there, because when they came in they did not do as usual where they normally knock at the main house and then obviously the principal person who were at that time, was my father, is normally asked to say, no Mister so and so, we are looking for so and so.  So he is the person who will take him to the room.
 But on that particular day what they did, is they just went straight to his room.   And what they did is they just banged that door.  They were banging the door and shouting, maak oop, maak oop.  
 So when they entered in that room, there are two twin 
beds inside that room.  So two boys were occupying the
other bed and Caiphus with another boy were occupying the other bed.
 So, they did not switch on the lights, that is what they were telling us.  So, they just blinded them with the torches which they were holding and they said, who is Caiphus, wie is Caiphus? in Afrikaans and then he said, I am Caiphus.   And they said, julle drie, uit.

THOMAS MANTHATA: I was under he impression that the three students or the three youths were sleeping in the same room with Caiphus.

MS NYOKA: No.  In fact, to clarify that these there boys were neither friends to Caiphus.  These three boys were from the neighbour who were attending a funeral at our neighbour, a Mr Zita, whose wife was buried the previous day.  I will say that because the wife was buried on the 23rd of August and then on the 24th, which according to us it was still night, because we have slept 23 for 24, so it was still night, so that morning our house was raided.
 So, these three boys had asked accommodation to sleep at our place.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Thank you Alegria.  I have no further questions.  I will hand over to the Chairperson.

MR LEWIN: Thanks Tom.   Fazel?

DR RANDERA: Can you just clarify for me, were you in the house the night Caiphus was shot because in your father's statement your name only comes out at about seven o'clock in the morning.

MS NYOKA: Yes.

DR RANDERA: You were in the house?

MS NYOKA: Yes.

DR RANDERA: Now you mentioned that 12 shots were fired.

MS NYOKA: Yes.

DR RANDERA: None of you have heard these shots.  Is that right?

MS NYOKA: We did not hear them.