Human Rights Violation Hearings — Uitenhage — 1996-08-28

NETISI TOTO: Because, what we know is that in Khayelitsha there were problems, living problems and there was a main issue about rent because people felt that the people in Khayelitsha were paying a lot of money for accommodation.  This is what we were protesting against because this meant that we were not going to pay the same rent and therefore it was a great surprise to us when we saw some people leaving the old Nobushle to go and stay in Khayelitsha.  This therefore surprised us.
 We did notice that there was a time when the state of emergency, we felt that it was mainly to make the leaders of the UDF suffer, and we saw 1987 as the turning point in as far as the conditions here in Uitenhage were concerned.
 In December 1986 the consumer boycott, and we are going to encourage students to start with proper schooling.  That decision we took on the 28 December 1986, whilst we were in hiding, running away in terms of state of emergency capturing us.  We were surprised to find out, despite proper  arrangements, pamphlets arranged so as to notify the entire community of Uitenhage, more in particular Kwanobushle, that on the 5th, the consumer boycott is uplifted, that is to say, on the 5th 1987 and the schooling is starting in January 1987.
 It was a surprise that when we started to distribute these pamphlets on the 5th, our town was surrounded.  On the UITENHAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
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4 January 1987, we were suddenly surrounded by caspers, police force.  It was a surprise to find in a situation where you can find De Wet Duke, escorted by the police vehicle and security branch.  It was a surprise to notice this in Uitenhage because in front of these vehicles, these police caspers, you could see a well coordinated arm force of people.  These people were in front and behind there was a support of police vehicles and caspers and we were hiding in various places because if we were to be seen that meant death to most of us.  Some of us even present here today were amongst us.  
 It happened that there was an incident on the 4th, which compelled that the majority of the youth should run away and hide, so as to save their lives.
 At night, just before that one day, certain homes were visited and these were the homes of the leaders of the UDF and these homes were attacked and even their relatives were also attacked and the police would visit those homes.   Whoever could get deep into the details and events of that day would mean there is a lot to say about the events of the day.
 Then at night on the 4th, the whole leadership which had been in hiding because we had made a vow that we were going to work underground we were going to operate underground as much a possible, so we therefore gathered at night and we appealed to the people who were affected by this incident including the youth that we should have a meeting in an open felt and we decided not to revenge or to retaliate because the innocent people were going to be injured.
 Those people who were in the march were absolutely not 
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involved because some of them were compelled to join this march and so we felt that it was inappropriate that some of the innocent people should be injured, but some of those who were in this crowd were happy that the police were in the means to support them because the policemen were trying as much as possible to crush the UDF, because UDF was demanding the release of all political parties, including President Mandela.  They wanted all the people in exile to come back to the country.  That was the context of the demands that at that time the UDF leadership was pursuing.
 The intention of ..(inaudible) UDF.  A similar situation that was emerging in Natal through the Inkata emergents.
 We therefore would like to say that the incidents that occurred from that 4th day of January 1987, that is for three years up till 1989, crushing the democratic expansion, that wanted to emerge and it was quite evident that at the time people were determined and this was an indication that people were prepared to sacrifice even their lives.  People had taken an oath here in Transkei to pursue the mission.
I am therefore going to ask that the victims that were affected during this time, who are present here today and those who are absent today, I therefore would like to explain that this incident was not Black to Black with the international community, that the conflict that is taking place inside South Afica is not Black to Black violence, instead, it is so designed that volunteer forces are co-vigilantes, make their services available to be used by the military intelligence, that has been confirmed by the present Vice President, Mbeki, that here in our area, Ben Conradie, the Professor was in charge of those missions.  
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 Now the thirty that we were projected as people that were fighting among ourselves was a part of an onslaught that has to be inculcated into our peoples' minds.
 We are therefore going to ask that those who got injured should be clear that they were not fighting against each other, but there was a third force that was responsible for this fighting of people.  Thank you Mr Chairman.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you, over to you Rev Xundu.

UNKNOWN: I have got a few questions to ask.  Who are these comrades you referred to who crossed over to Khayelitsha?  Did they form any organisation over there in Khayelitsha?

NETISI TOTO: I was in a leadership that was to negotiate and resolve conflict that was emerging on an educational front together with my colleague Mr Temodi Yange, who is presently in the Afrikaners camp.  Then I knew that he was an Afrikaner, he was a PAC supporter, but when we formed the NECC, the National Education Crisis Committee, we formed it with an intention of ensuring that on the part of the state of apartheid, unfairness is done to our people, but when we found that the enemy was interfering with this struggle, we then saw comrades like Mr Temodi Yange, distancing themselves from the struggle.

UNKNOWN: This particular evening, that was the 4th, you say there was caspers, did you perhaps see any members of the PAC at the time?

NETISI TOTO: They called themselves the concerned group.  They named themselves, the Uitenhage Concerned Group, but the majority of them were later called themselves, the Ama-Afrikans.  One person who died by the name of Thank you, was in the first group that I referred to as the Concerned Group UITENHAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
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and he went out proclaiming that he was an Ama-Afrikan.  Some of the comrades who were with, like Malawi Nogase, they were members of the Concerned Group but they later called themselves Ama-Afrika.

UNKNOWN: This group, Ama-Afrika, was it trying to control Nomushle, together with you or were they trying to maintain order?

NETISI TOTO: The truth is that they were proclaiming that they were African, but they did this under certain conditions that they were ANC and UDF members.

UNKNOWN: Now if you say these Ama-Afrika with was connected to the Azapo, not how connected were they with the government of apartheid?

NETISI TOTO: This is what caused the shock, because when we were arrested, it would be really difficult to see them arrested in the majority.  We were the only people who were arrested by the White people.
 One other thing that was causing some concern was that they knew where they stayed, like we were known, but when it came to the arrest you wouldn't see them arrested together with us in jail.

UNKNOWN: These victims from the 4 January, did they run away or did they go in exile, and where did they get to?

NETISI TOTO: Some of them went in hiding into the houses, here in Uitenhage.  Some, in the majority, went in hiding in Port Elizabeth.  The reason for this is that we did not want to go very far from Uitenhage where the struggle was.