Human Rights Violation Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — UNKNOWN

MR LYSTER: Mrs Mdluli, like the witness before you, and the witness before her, you have told us about the disappearance of your son - or the child that you - yes, your son, and we have seen through the suffering of all three of you how difficult this pain must be to bear.  This happened nearly 10 years ago, and still the wounds have not healed.  Your son had his life in front of him, he was on his way to fetch his matric results when he was abducted.
Thembalihle, you have lost your cousin, and it is clear from what you have told us that he was a young man with a good future in front of him.  You described him as a leader.
You are both victims of the terrible political intolerance which was so prevalent in this province at that time, and indeed we are still experiencing that political intolerance, which was fostered and nurtured by the policies of apartheid. 
We will try to investigate what happened to Eric, although it happened, as I have said, nearly 10 years ago, and we cannot promise that we will have any success.  We do hope that you do feel a little better having told your story, and that it is now a little easier for you to come to terms with the disappearance of Eric.
We thank you very much for coming in, having the patience to wait all day to tell your story, and we wish you strength and courage for the future.  Thank you very much.

MR LYSTER: (Inaudible) ... greet you.  You have come from Edendale in Pietermaritzburg, and you have come to tell us about the attack upon your house in December 1987.  Before you tell us that story can you please stand up and take the oath.

ELPHEUS MTHEMBU: (Sworn, States)

MR LYSTER: Who is there with you on the stage?

WITNESS:   He's my son.

MR LYSTER: Mr Mthembu, Mr Lax, my colleague, will assist you with your evidence.  Thank you.

MR LAX: Good afternoon, Mr Mthembu.  Welcome, and thank you for coming.  If you could just tell us, before we start with your evidence per se, a little bit about your family.  How many children have you had, where were you living at the time, where do you live at the moment?  We see that you live at Esikhodini now.

WITNESS:   I am staying at Imbali.  I got all my children while staying at Pietermaritzburg.  One was born in 1952, the other one was born in 1954, the third one was born in 1958.  And these two, it's a daughter and a son, they all disappeared.  It was 1987 if I remember well.  We were called to a meeting at Imbali.  We went to the meeting.  When we arrived at the meeting they told us that we have to unite and be Inkatha so that we can get electricity in our place.  I refused to be Inkatha member.  I told them I've got my own power, I can instal electricity in my home.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... at which place?

WITNESS:   We were at a church, a Methodist church.  There was Awetha and another man from Hammarsdale, Ndleli.  When I told him that I will not be able to join Inkatha he said, "You "deserve to be killed if you don't want to join Inkatha.  You are dogs.  You are very stubborn."  I asked him why did he swear at us.  That is where Inkatha started causing trouble in our community.  I said I don't want any electricity and I don't want to be an Inkatha member.  After that until now a young boy came.  He was running.  My boys were taking one of their friends out.  He wanted to stab them, and they came running back into the house and I asked, "What's happening?" and they said, "Someone's trying to kill us outside."  And they came out and they started fighting him and they injured him.  I asked, "Are you still going to go out?"  They said, "Yes, we are still going out."  And then the other one said, "No, no, I am not going out now.  It seems as if we are going to be killed now."  And they were coming with this man who was the leader, and I asked, "What's happening?"  "You think you are so clever, you, Mr Mthembu.  We have to destroy this family."  When I looked around I saw my friend with my friend.  I said, "Xaba," I called him, and he said, "No, don't talk to me."  They tried to shoot, and then it just grazed my son's hand, the bullet.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... Mr Mthembu?

WITNESS:   It's the one has died, Simon Mthembu.  This one with whom I am here, Elpheus, comes after Simon.  The eldest one is not even here.  He doesn't even know that this is happening.  There were a group of people.  There were even all the elderly people and the young ones.   And he threw an object through my window and it was broken.  My younger child asked, "What's going on?" and I tell him, "Look, they are killing us now.  We have to rush out of here."  I was only holding a panga and there was nothing else.  When I was rushing after them they started running away.  This Mncwabe man I wanted to cut his throat, but he was running so fast so that I couldn't catch him.  We came back and told my children, "Oh, let's go back home."  And we just sat at home.  We thought this matter was over.   When I was running after him, and it looked as though one guy - one man was standing nearby who also wanted to stab me with a spear, and I just ducked and it happened that it had to sort of like went deep down into the ground.  And they come to ask me, "How did you defeat them alone?  Where did you get the "nthelezizi," the muthi that's used?"  I said to them, "Go and fetch all your arms and come back to me.  I am so tired of you I want to show you.  Don't you see where the thing started?  It started from where they said we must join Inkatha."  And all continued like that.  And my children, the other one have come back, and they said, "We're coming to fetch you."  We went out, we were going to see the police, and then one man came.  There was this other one called Sikizo who used to shoot people around.  He was trying to shoot at us, but the bullets just go astray.  And they asked, "How are these people just - I mean we can't hurt them."  I told my boys that, "Okay, let's not go this way, let's walk on foot," and then we passed an Inkatha group.  They couldn't fight us because we were not armed, we were just walking.  We tried to report the case.  They were just laughing at us.

MR LAX: (Inaudible)

WITNESS:   I want to Seckland(?) and Plessislaer.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... Plessislaer Police Station?

WITNESS:   That is correct.  It continued just like that and we just waited.  One day we got a call from a woman.  They told me that, "Your children are dying on the road."  It was Thulani, Jerome.  We don't know the person who gave us the message.  We ran out.  The other one who died, my younger son, Simon, came.  He was driving a green car, Thulani ... (inaudible) ... and Jerome.  Nothuli.  His surname is Ngcobo.  They didn't get out of the car.  They just peeped out through the window of the car and they said to me, "Your home it's finished today."  And I asked them why.  They said, "You are still talking," and then they pointed a gun at me, trying to shoot at me, but nothing came out, and they left.  After leaving, and then they went to Awetha side.  They said, "There's nothing that we can do."  I was just pointing a panga, standing at the door.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... you've spoken about a Thulani.  Who is that person?

WITNESS:   Thulani is Ngcobo's son, Mr Ngcobo's son.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... sorry, which Ngcobo's son?

WITNESS:   Thulani Ngcobo.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... mentioned a Jerome.  Which Jerome is this?

WITNESS:   Jerome Mncwabe.  He went to Madadeni.  He died.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... and then you spoke about Thu - Thu Ngcobo?

WITNESS:  It's Thu Ngcobo.

MR LAX: (Inaudible) ... Khize.

WITNESS:   It's Khiza Zuma.

MR LAX: Who are these people?  What were they?

WITNESS:   They were all members of the Inkatha.  They called them steady(?).  When they have killed many people they graduate and call them steady.

MR LAX: So you say these people were killers for Inkatha?

WITNESS:   They were killers.