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

MS NYOKA: The police had all left shortly after the body was taken away.   The last vehicle to leave was a white Ford Sierra with two white policemen.
 Before the arrival of the hearse the three youths who were identified by my daughter away in a white combi. 
 At day break members of my family and I went outside 
into Caiphus's room.   I saw the door of Caiphus's room was kicked in and burnt.  The beds, mattresses and blankets in disarray.  The blanket on Caiphus's bed was covered in blood and the room was in a terrible state.
 I realised then that Caiphus was shot and my suspicions that the body that was put into the hearse was that of Caiphus.
 Up to this stage neither I nor members of my family were informed of the killing of my son.   We were not also told of the reasons or circumstances surrounding this shooting.  I did not hear any shooting or crying while the police were in my house.   I certainly did not hear Caiphus scream or shout.
 At about seven o'clock that morning I sent my daughter, Alegria, to enquire from the police at Daveyton about Caiphus, because we had at this stage still not heard from the police as to what happened or why they were at my home.
 I was later informed by Alegria that she was referred to Maj Van den Berg at the Benoni Police Station at Harper Avenue by the Daveyton Police.
 On Wednesday the 26th of August 1987 I was fetched by three black Security policemen to see Maj Van den Berg at the Benoni Police Station.  At this stage I was not officially notified of Caiphus's death and neither did I see his body again until the 3rd of September 1987 at the funeral parlour of BOS Funeral Undertakers.
 Maj Van den Berg had told me that he regretted that Caiphus was killed by units which dealt with terrorism.
This is roughly the details of how my brother died.
 The funeral was very difficult to be arranged. 
Restriction order were served.
 The prime witnesses to the killing, those three boys, who were with him in that room, were Mr Elsen Monyakeni, now in Soweto and Exodus Guguletu Nyakane, living in Wattville and Mr Excellent Mtembu, living in Soweto.  All three witnessed that the police that entered that room asked who Caiphus was and my brother identified himself.  He never resisted.  Then the three policemen ordered the three boys to go out without clothes, except their underpants.
 They also stated that they were later taken from our home by a white combi to Daveyton Police Station where one plain clothed police wearing a balaclava wrote the following on the chip board:  999 Limba Street, Caiphus Nyoka executed, six shots means of death. 
 I must bring to the attention of the Commission here that my father saw the combi referred to here on the 28th of September 1988, that its registrations were HSC762T Nissan E20 and it was driven by a Constable working for the Daveyton City Council and he positively identified the driver as a Mr Mcabe.   
 Inquest hearing took place in 1988, October.  The place where this inquest was held was Benoni Magisterial Court and the Magistrate of the inquest was Mr JP Myburgh, the family legal representatives were Attorney Mr Soma and Advocate Mr AJ Graft.   
 The findings of the inquest were very disappointing.   The Magistrate was very vague and certain in   .....  To us it appeared that he was pressurised by the Ministry of Law and Order.   We know that Minister's Vlok's office was consulted by him before he could pass the verdict on July 
1989.  This is proven by his summary as quoted by Sowetan
newspaper July 14, 1989 that though the policemen acted wrongfully, they acted reasonable under the circumstances prevailing at the time.  The policemen who were going to arrest Nyoka had been warned that he had hand grenades and other explosives and he was a very dangerous man and he was likely to resist arrest.
 The autopsy was done by both the state and a private pathologist.  The private pathologist was representing the family.  The family private pathologist was Dr Len Ansti, I have got copies to that effect.  The autopsy findings, according to the pathologist Caiphus was shot 12 times.   He had 12 bullet wounds and a controversy surrounding this finding and the police evidence is that the police claimed that they shot him 9 times.
 Dr L Ansti had serious reservations about this.   He stated that the only time one could justify that controversy was if one assumes that Caiphus was shot shielding himself with his hands against his attackers, which means therefore that the three bullets that penetrated his palms also penetrated his chest.  
 But this version also created a serious doubt on the statement given by the police that they shot Caiphus because he stretched his arm sideways to grasp a shiny object, which later they said, was a knife.
 The inquest failed to clarify this contradiction.  The impact of the incidence to the Nyoka family.  The incidence really crushed my family.  The invisible pain  we suffered cannot be described.   My parents were physically and emotionally traumatised.  They both developed hypertension and the worst is that my father's health deteriorated quickly and on the 22nd of October 1992 he died of kidney cancer.   This was the worst blow for the family as a whole.
 My younger brother, Titus, and my two children, Philippa and Amelia were also seriously affected.  Their performance at school declined.  Titus was so badly affected that he dropped out.  You find that people close to you dissociate themselves from you after the incident as a result, as individual members of the family we have the problem of trusting people now.   We even have policemen.
 Personally the idea of community policing is something I believe it could not be successful as long as policemen trained under the old regime standards and values are not suspended, especially those with criminal records.
 A commission of enquiry should be established to investigate police who were involved in covert activities before community policing is implemented.
 What we want the Truth Commission to do for us, we believe my brother's death was a conspiracy.  The inquest failed to establish that because it was covering up the police action.    So the TRC could help us if it could reveal this.  
 The TRC should also establish the fact that the  Police Force during the eighties were involved in covert activities.   Total onslaught was their goal to eliminate all those who were determined to fight against apartheid.
 As in our case when they had completed their mission as commanded they wrote on the chop board:  Caiphus Nyoka executed ....  (Tape ends)
 The contradiction with regards to the number of shots fired:  Caiphus had twelve bullet wounds, police claimed to have shot him nine times.  The question is, who shot the three bullets?
 My mother Saroma was seriously affected physically and emotionally about what happened.  She lost the two most important people in her life, a son and a husband.   My younger brother, Titus, who was also seriously affected by the death of Caiphus is now a problem as well.
 We would like the Commission to find a way of assisting my mother financially or otherwise as a form of reparation.   Justice should take its course on the perpetrators.    
 Those who really regret what they did should come personally to reconcile with the family.  
 We also want the Commission to recommend to the present Government that recognition of those who died for our freedom is very important.   Monuments in memory of those who died for this freedom should be built in their respective communities.
 This is the end of my presentation.
 Thank you.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Alegria we thank you and we thank the family.   It is very clear how the family suffered and personally I will ask one or two questions, before handing over to the Chairperson.
 Under the leadership of Caiphus, were there ever acts of violence, perpetrated by Cosas in the township?