Human Rights Violation Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — UNKNOWN

WITNESS:   No, before then when they had gone to a funeral in Imbali they came back running, being chased by the police, and the police were shooting.  Thereafter nobody came to my place to attack.   Because what I am saying is according to the way he died probably he might have said to you that at some stage he had an altercation with Inkatha members or something.  Were there any people who harassed him before then?   ---  I remember one day when he was at work, just before he knocked off he used to stand at the gate.  Whenever there was somebody who was standing at the gate then he would come back into the house, he wouldn't proceed to the street.  Then one day when he went out he saw a car with dimmed lights at the gate.  Then he went back into his workplace.  Probably he sensed that there were people who were hunting him down.

MRS GCABASHE: This boy with which he was injured, do you know him?  Two of them got injured.  Do you know the other one?

WITNESS:  /Yes, I

MRS GCABASHE: Yes, I do.  It was a Nxwali guy.  They are still there.

MRS GCABASHE: One other thing that I am going to ask you is, is there any evidence or testimony that was given regarding your son's death?

WITNESS:   No, there was absolutely none.  We don't know anything.

MRS GCABASHE: Did the police take him from where he was?

WITNESS:   He was found sleeping.  They say a guy by the name of Sithoni - Sithoni is a policeman, an elderly policeman - he saw people burning, and he is the one who went to report to the police that there were people burning.

MRS GCABASHE: Then after that had happened was there any case or any inquest or docket that was opened?

WITNESS:   What I remember is that after the funeral we went to the police station.  The police wrote that he was killed, but nobody knew who killed him.  Then the sergeant who was in charge of the case just didn't continue with the case.  Nothing came out of that.  After about six years - after six years I was working a cleansing - I was doing a cleansing ceremony.  It's cultural for us to do that.  As I had finished policemen came and they said they are looking for Shezi place.  I said, "This is Shezi's place."  Then they said they regretted the fact that they had come to remind me about my son's death, but they had come to tell me that the cases are being re-opened, and they wanted me to tell them as to who had killed my son.  I told them I didn't know anything about my son's death.

MRS GCABASHE: I realise that you haven't made any particular request.

WITNESS:   No, I have got no knowledge of that.

MRS GCABASHE: But do you wish to know who killed your son?

WITNESS:  Yes, I do wish to know who killed my son.

MRS GCABASHE: One other thing I saw when I read your statement, something that touched me, is the request that you make that you wish that there could be a memorial stone for your child, or a community hall built so that it would always be a reminder to the community that there were heroes who died during a period of hardship.  You said you do wish your son to be remembered as a hero.  Lastly what I am going to ask from you is, is there anything that changed in your life after your son's death?  After your only son's death what happened in your life that actually affected you adversely?

WITNESS:   He was my only son.  He was my only hope.  I believed that my survival depended solely upon him.  He was the breadwinner.  And I felt like I was having high blood pressure.  I had heart problems.  I could get night sweats.

MRS GCABASHE: Are you getting any medical attention?

WITNESS:   No, I am not getting any.

MRS GCABASHE: Are you working at the present moment?

WITNESS:   Yes, I am working as a domestic.

MRS GCABASHE: Thank you very much, Mrs Shezi.  We do understand your story.  We sympathise with you, and we do wish that we could meet you halfway with your request, but we do not have the powers to grant you any promises.  We pass our recommendations to the President, then he decides what it is that they should do with each particular case.  I'll hand over to the Chairman.

MRS GCABASHE: Mrs Shezi, is there anything that your sister would like to say very briefly to add to what you have said, bearing in mind that she has not made a statement?  Is there something brief?

WITNESS:   Yes, there is.

MRS GCABASHE: (Inaudible)

WITNESS:   Yes, I can hear you. Give me your full names please.   ---   Yes, I can hear you.  I am Gladys Shezi.

GLADYS SHEZI: (Sworn, States)

GLADYS SHEZI: If there is something that you would just like briefly to add to what your sister has said about the death of her son please will you do so as briefly as possible?

WITNESS:   I just wanted to add that the way the police handled this matter, the way they treated us, even before the funeral they harassed us so much.  They would just come and harass us, and we just couldn't understand it because we were the bereaved, and the manner in which they treated us was undesirable.  They kept on asking about the funeral, who were the prominent speakers, who were the prominent people who were going to be at the funeral.  They were absolutely not concerned about my son's death.  All they wanted to know was the funeral proceedings and who would be there.  Then on the Saturday when we were supposed to bury they came in the morning and they kept on asking us all these funny, irrelevant questions.  And that made me feel very sad, because I do not think that a bereaved family should be treated in that manner that they treated us.  There came a stage where I just totally disregarded them.  Even at the time that the reverend was giving a sermon the policemen were full in the hall as if they were standing guard over us.  Now we didn't know as to what was actually taking place.  That's all I wanted to say.

GLADYS SHEZI: Thank you very much for the opinion that you've expressed.  That shows us that the people that we thought were our protectors were the ones who actually were used by the Government to crush the very existence of the rights of the people.  We thank you very much for having come to tell us about the trauma that you went through.  Thank you very much.

MR LAX: I am not sure which of you might be able to answer this.  Maybe both of you could.  Do you know any of these police that came to your home and that were asking all these questions round about the time of the funeral?  Do you know any of their names or where they were from perhaps?

WITNESS:   No, we don't know.  I don't know who they are, but they were from Plessis.

MR LAX: Plessislaer?

WITNESS:   Plessislaer.

MR LAX: Thank you.

MR LYSTER: Thank you for coming here today and sharing your very tragic story with us.  It is clear to us that you have both been very affected by the death of Muzi Wavuka Hubert Shezi, and although this is a very sad incident and event in your lives I hope it is of some comfort to you both that you can share this platform together to give each other support.  As my colleague, Dr Magwaza, has said, it is tragic that people who were meant to protect us, and meant to protect you in those hard, harsh times of the 80s, in fact were very often your persecutors as well, and we hope the fact that now we have achieved democrary and liberation that these sorts of things will never happen again.  Thank you for coming and sharing your story with us today.
Mrs Faith Mbatha, you are here before the Commission to give your testimony about the way in which you were being harassed.  I would like you to stand up and swear, and say that whatever you are going to say here will be the truth, nothing else but the truth, so God help you.

FAITH MBATHA: (Sworn, States)

FAITH MBATHA: These people who are with you are just accompanying you?

WITNESS:   The one on my left-hand side it's my daughter.  They are just here because they are accompanying me.  They aren't going to say anything.