Human Rights Violation Hearings — Bloemfontein — UNKNOWN

WITNESS: Before I start, there was a boy named Aron Mohutu.He was an ANC Youth League member. He used to come to me and recruit me to jointhem and stop being a member of a Dikwankwetla. I told him that I wouldn't beable to join them. It took time, and thereafter he came to me. He said theywere talking about me at the Catholic Church, that if I don't join the ANC YouthLeague they were going to attack me after two weeks and they were going to killme. I will never ever get any forgiveness. He said he talked to them not todo that, then he was giving me two weeks to decide. I refused and told themthat I wouldn't join them. On that very same year that I had my supermarketI lost my supermarket. I tried to earn some living, so I went to Cape Town,to Johannesburg, as well as Durban. When I came back in August 1987 I saw Casspirsin my yard. It was on a morning. That is when I saw my property burning. Thatwas my bedroom suite, as well as saxophones, trumpets, trombones and base tenor,together with property to the value of R4 000,00. By then I had already openedup a tuck shop which had stock that was worth R6 000,00. They told me that Iwas an informer. The Comrades kept on harassing me. My life was now in danger,and by then I was a member of - a parliamentarian during T K Mopede's reign.They kept on harassing me and attacking me until 1990. By then I bought a kombi,and they prevented the people from boarding my kombi, until 1990 they attackedmy home for the second time. It was round about quarter to eight when I wentto J Section. I met with my wife along the way. She was bleeding. She had hireda car and she told me that our home was being attacked. When I got thereI found the furniture burnt down. The windows were broken with stones. I don'tknow how big were these stones. There was absolutely nothing that was salvaged.All my property had been burnt down. I asked her about the children, then shesaid she had hidden them in the toilet. Then they were saying to me why can'tI call Mopede to come and help me. I kept on being attacked until I took himto Qwa-Qwa. I still feel very painful about my property that got lost. My contractwas stopped. I still remember it was Mr Tele Shuping. I had bought stock tothe value of R33 000,00. They told me I must go to Qwa-Qwa because I am a Sotho.He threw me with my identity document and told me that, "It's been long thatI have been telling you to go to Qwa-Qwa." I went to Botshabelo and I lost thatR33 000,00-worth of stock. And at some stage I got my shop broken into and allthe stock stolen. From 1987 my first wife had lost her mind - until the 1984elections (sic), when we separated. I was helping the students at thattime. State President P W Botha had a law that said the children shouldn'teat during break time. During that time I was hiding those students in my officesin the storeroom. When the police came they used to ask me why I didn't givethem permission to come in and assault the children. I told them I was againstthe government of the day. Thereafter I felt very bad when the youth of Botshabeloturned against me, whereas I was fighting for their rights and I was fightingthat they shouldn't be assaulted. I feel very bad. It's a wound that will neverheal to me, because I left my house in Thaba Nchu that I had recently built,which could be to the value of R39 000,00. I had a double garage. I hadto leave the house because I was a Sotho, and I had to go to Botshabelo or Qwa-Qwabecause I was a Sotho. Throughout my life I have lost so much. Thank you.

MR DLAMINI: Thank you, Mr Morake. Can I ask a few clarifying questions?Can you tell us more about your family and the children, and also in relationto this incident? Are they okay? Did they suffer any injury or whatever ill-treatment?--- They were treated very badly. Even the schools refused to admit them becausethey were children of a Dikwankwetla members. The teachers, as well as the schoolchildren- they were being chased away and they just didn't enjoy their school lives.Thereafter it happened that my other child was affected mentally, ended up smokingdagga.

MR DLAMINI: You mentioned that your first wife became mentally disturbed.Was it as a result of the bombing or the burning of your house?

WITNESS: Yes, I couldsay that, because immediately thereafter she changed so drastically. She mighthave suffered some anxiety, because she didn't really act like a normal person.

MR DLAMINI: What is she doing now?

WITNESS: She doesn't work at the moment.

MR DLAMINI: And yourself, you mentioned that your business initiativeswere destroyed. How are you earning a living? What is your occupation? As wellas the children. What is everybody else in the family doing?

WITNESS: At the momentI have started opening up a tuck shop. I am trying to earn a living by sellingin the tuck shop. I've opened it in my yard.

MR DLAMINI: From people who attacked your house you mentioned Aron Mohutu, but I am not sure whether you mentioned him assomebody who came to recruit you, or whether he was part of the people who actuallyattacked your premises. Can you tell us more about the people you identifiedfrom the group who attacked you on those particular occasions?

WITNESS: He used tocome to me and ask me as a member of the ANC Youth League. He used to ask meto come and join them and leave the Dikwankwetla party. Thereafter the peoplewho attacked my house, according to my wife's version, I don't know them, Ihave never seen them. But during the day I used to meet quite a group of people,and they used to go around my yard wanting to kill me. I don't see some of themany more, but there is a Tsyetsi amongst them. I know some of them right now,but I don't know their names. They are still there.

MR DLAMINI: (Inaudible) ... to give us some identifying particulars ifwe were to make a follow up?

WITNESS: Yes, I can point some of them even though Idon't know their names. Some of them, when we were making the rallies, theyused to come and wreak havoc in the rallies, and insult us in many occasions.I know them by seeing them.

MR DLAMINI: You mentioned that the matter was reported to the police, butthere was no - no progress was seen. Can you tell us more of the action thatwas taken by the police and the subsequent progress?

WITNESS: As I had already saidthe police came. I thought they would take further steps. They came the secondtime, but there was absolutely nothing that they did until now. I have alsomentioned that during our meetings I took the reports to the police, but therewas nothing that was done.

MR DLAMINI: Which police station did you report to?

WITNESS: I  went to the Botshabelo Police Station.

MR DLAMINI: Thank you, Mr Chairman, can I hand over back to you.

MR LYSTER: Thank you. Thank you, Mr Morake, I just wantto ask my fellow Commissioners and Committee Members whether they have any questionswhich they want to put to you.

MR LYSTER: For our records, by the way the police at the Botshabelo PoliceStation, what type of police? You know our land was so fragmented that thereare so many different types of police. What type of police were these?

WITNESS: Itwas SAP Police.

MR LYSTER: You have said that you were a Member of Parliament. Was thereany attempt to protect you from these acid experiences which had confrontedyou from your Government?

WITNESS: Our Chairperson, Dr T K Mopede, spoke to the SAPto protect our homes, so they protected our homes as from that time.

MR LYSTER: So you did get bodyguards later.

WITNESS: Yes, we did.

MR LYSTER: Mr Morake, in your statement you said when you were in ThabaNchu you were being harassed because you were Sotho-speaking people. I wantto know, when you say your children were being harassed at school, what schoolwas that. Was it Thaba Nchu School, or what?