Amnesty Hearings — Cape Town — 1997-07-08

ADV GOZO COMMITTEE: No documentation relating to Operation Great Storm in particular, but what Ican put before the Committee is that around the date of the commission of theoffence there was a lot written about Operation Barcelona in the media. I don'tknow if that would be of assistance to the Committee, but I know that therewould be that kind of documentation. And in relation as well to the whole situationabout SADTU, the Teacher's Union.

ADV DE JAGER: Yes but as far as the evidence of this applicant is concerned he merely mentionedBarcelona in passing and it doesn't seem to have played a role in his motivationfor the killing of Miss Biehl.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Advocate de Jager the short answer is that we had requested whether there isany documentation which can help us to understand ourselves what this meant.The applicants were unable to provide us with any documentation simply becauseit was adopted by APLA, it was carried across to them inter alia at thismeeting and whatever their understanding was of what it meant came out of whatthey heard at the meeting and those are our instructions.

CHAIRPERSON: We understand.

JUDGE WILSON: Have you spoken to the people they said addressed the meeting? Do you know howto make contact with them, whether they are available?

NORMAN ARENDSE: Justice Wilson the answer is no.

CHAIRPERSON: Mr Brink this might be a convenient stage to take the adjournment.

CROSSBY MR BRINK: Yes. May I suggest we resume at two o'clock?

CHAIRPERSON: Very well. The Committee will now adjourn and we will resume at two o'clock.
WITNESS EXCUSED
HEARING ADJOURNS
ON RESUMPTION

NORMAN ARENDSE: Mr Chairman, learned members of the Committee, if there are no further questionsof Mr Peni, if we could move on to Mr Nofemela.
	Similarly canI hand up the original affidavit of Eazi Mzikhona Nofemela, and can that bemarked Exhibit B or Annexure B. Exhibit B, thank you.
EXHIBIT B HANDEDIN - AFFIDAVIT M NOFEMELA

NORMAN ARENDSE: Mr Chairman Ms Gozo will deal with this part of the evidence of Mr Nofemela.

CHAIRPERSON: Will you be reading his affidavit first?

ADV GOZO COMMITTEE: Yes.

CHAIRPERSON: Do proceed.

ADV GOZO COMMITTEE: Mr Chairman, members of the Committee may I now proceed to readEasy Mzikhona Nofemela's affidavit into the record.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Mr Chairman may I just interject. Over lunch time one of the journalists askedme about disclosing the contents of the further affidavits which we intend toput before the Committee. I said, look in my view they shouldn't do so becausethey haven't been disclosed to this Committee yet officially, and perhaps MrChairman if you could just give some clarity on that.

CHAIRPERSON: You have been approached?

NORMAN ARENDSE: Well it would appear that at least that particular journalist was keen to putthat on the wire even before these details were made known to this Committee.

CHAIRPERSON: Well I think journalists ought to be advised that unless an affidavit has beenaffirmed by this witness they ought not to make use of the contents of thatdocument. I am not too sure whether they are entitled to access to that documentbefore that stage either. Your clients, and I think you should ensure, thattheir affidavits are not made available until the appropriate time.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Mr Chairman we have certainly done - we were under the impression it's partof the standard procedure that we've been requested a copy of each affidavitthat we intend to hand up and that's what we've done, so if I did so mistakenlythen I apologise, but as you could have seen just now I passed on an affidavitand apparently that was for the Press.

CHAIRPERSON: That's unfortunate that that has happened. It seems that you can't undo whathas been done, and there would be no point in my making any statements at thisstage in that regard because these documents are in their hands. One can onlyappeal to them to hold back making any comments on those documents or publishingthem until the contents of those affidavits have been confirmed on oath.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Thank you Mr Chairman.