Amnesty Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — 1998-02-10

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, that is true.

NORMAN ARENDSE: And the application relates to your role in the attack on the Crazy Beat disco in Newcastle on the 14th of February 1994, is that correct?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, that is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Is it also correct that the criminal court where you were, in which you appeared as accused 1, found that you did not play a direct role in the attack?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Is it correct that your role was confined to driving your co-applicants, Tanda and Shiceka in your motor vehicle to the scene of the attack before the attack happened and then again subsequently after the attack, you also transported the accused in your motor vehicle?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: And for that role that you played in the whole operation, you were sentenced to 10 years imprisonment?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: And you are currently serving that sentence at the Waterval prison in Newcastle?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Mr Malevu, just some personal details.  Are you married?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Do you have children?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, I have children.

NORMAN ARENDSE: How many and how old are they?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: There are two.

NORMAN ARENDSE: What are their ages?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: One is five and the older one is nine.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Do you get to see them from time to time?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, I do see them.  However, not that often.

NORMAN ARENDSE: How do you feel about what happened, you know what happened in the attack, a lady was killed and two people were injured.  How do you feel about what happened.

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I feel sorry for the family and I will like to ask for forgiveness, and I will also ask for forgiveness before the Commission because whatever I did, I didn't gain anything,  I did it in the name of the organisation.

NORMAN ARENDSE: The organisation that you are referring to, is that the PAC?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Were you a member of APLA at the time?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: No, I wasn't.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Mr Malevu, just give us some background as to your education.  Did you go to school and if so, up to what standard?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I passed standard 10.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Did you have the privilege of any tertiary education?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I didn't get the chance.

NORMAN ARENDSE: When did you first join the PAC?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: It was at the time when it opened its mouth.

NORMAN ARENDSE: When would that have been?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: It was during 1990.

NORMAN ARENDSE: I believe you also were an official of NATO, the Trade Union federation aligned to the PAC, is that correct?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Were you politically active, did you play an active role in the politics of the movement?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, at some times I occupied some positions.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Are you in a position to explain to us the relationship between the PAC as a political organisation and APLA as a military organisation?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: APLA is the armed wing of the PAC.  PAC concentrate on the political side, while APLA concentrates on the armed struggle.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Before the 14th of February 1994, that is before the Crazy Beat disco attack, did you know that the attack was going to take place?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, I did know.

NORMAN ARENDSE: When did you first get to know and who told you and so on, just explain that to us?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I got it from Andile Shiceka and Walter Tanda.  The two people sitting right here with me.

NORMAN ARENDSE: When did you get that from them?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: It was during the weekend before the attack, I met them, there was a meeting where they explained to me the operations, telling me that they have come to Newcastle and all the things they were coming to do in Newcastle.  That is where I got the message.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Now, is it correct that during the course of 1993 already, you had been informed by a member of the APLA high command that an operation would take place in Newcastle?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, I did get that.

NORMAN ARENDSE: When in 1993 did you get that?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: It was between May and June in 1993, I don't remember well the exact month.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Can you name the person in the APLA high command who told you this?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I don't know his exact name, but we use code names, and he was referred to as Jones.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Would this Jones be Mandla Power, would he be one and the same person or don't you know?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I can't say it is the two, however, you find that people had many code names, so I will make a mistake if I say he was one of the two.

NORMAN ARENDSE: At the time, and I am referring to mid-1993, you said May, June, you are not exactly sure, were you at that stage given any task to do?  Were you told what role to play?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes.

NORMAN ARENDSE: What was that task?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I was told that APLA will send its members in Natal to check the place, or to do reconnaissance in the area so that when I go back to my place, I will also be armed.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Is it correct that you were given arms and ammunition to take from Umtata and to hide it in Newcastle?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, that is correct.  I took them with me.

NORMAN ARENDSE: How did you transport these arms?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I was travelling in a bakkie, we disconnected it and we put them inside the body of the car and then we seal it off again.  I took them back home and when I am at home, I dismantled it and took the firearms out.

NORMAN ARENDSE: So these arms were transported in your bakkie and they were concealed inside the bodywork of the bakkie?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, they were hidden in that way.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Did you use these arms at all before the Crazy Beat disco attack?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: No, we didn't use them.  We only used them at the operation at Crazy Beat disco operation.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Okay, now in January 1994 and part of February 1994, you had been away to Sweden, is that right?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: Yes, that is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Can you briefly tell us how did it come about that you went to Sweden?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: The Civic Organisation by the name of SANCO, (indistinct) elected me as a delegate to go to Sweden.  That is how I was elected.

NORMAN ARENDSE: And when you returned in February, is that correct, on the 11th of February?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Before the 11th of February, did you know your co-applicants Walter Tanda and Andile Shiceka?  Did you meet them before the Crazy Beat incident?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: I didn't know Tanda but I knew Shiceka.

NORMAN ARENDSE: How did you know Shiceka?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: During 1993, when it was said they will come up to do reconnaissances, he was part of the group which came to do reconnaissance in Newcastle.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Are you in a position to explain to us what did this reconnaissance entail, what did that mean?

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: What I was trying to explain was that as members of APLA who came to the area, they couldn't just start attacking, they first have to come and investigate the situation to see how the layout is in Newcastle and to find out how many people they will need to do the attack or operations.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Did you know what the reason was why these APLA operatives were doing these reconnaissance?