Amnesty Hearings — Durban — 1998-03-26

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: The reason why we reported to him is because he is the one who facilitated that we had a contact with this white man who was in charge of the SPU's

MR MALAN: Thank you.

ADV MOTATA: Mr Myeza before you were trained were you an IFP member in the in the district of Eshowe?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I was a card-carrying member of the IFP.

ADV MOTATA: Did you believe in the IFP policies because I understand you to say to us that the card was taken out on your behalf, am I right in so understanding you?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I believed in the policies of the IFP because my family was also IFP members.

ADV MOTATA: Had there not been promises of a police job, would you have gone for the training?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I would not have gone for training.  It would mean that I was not going to get a job after training.

ADV MOTATA: But you realise that after the training you were instead a facilitator in perpetrating crimes?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes, that is true.

ADV MOTATA: Did you ask at some stage before perpetrating these crimes: "When am I getting the job I have been trained for"?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I thought the job we were doing was the reason why we had been trained because we would go to Ulundi and get paid for what we did.

ADV MOTATA: You say you earned a salary for some time but it stopped, didn't your mind question if is this a permanent job or not?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I did not think of that because the reason why we could not get our money then, is because the person who was paying us was no longer at Ulundi.  He had run away.  When we went to Ulundi to protest about not getting our money, we found that this person had run away and there was a new person in his place.

ADV MOTATA: Now the people who trained you could you describe them to us who are they?  We know that Philip Powell would from time to time show his face a day or after but did you know who trained you people?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: The person who was training us at Umfolozi was Somatekisi Mthembu.  That is how he was known.  There were many other commanders, but I did not know their names, another one was Madlinyoka.  What was happening there is that people were not giving their right names or surnames.

ADV MOTATA: For instance Mr Mthembu whom you knew to be owning a taxi, did you know his rank or what position he held in whatever organisation?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Let me correct this first.  This man did not own taxis.  This name "Somatekisi" was just his pseudonym and that is how we called him.

ADV MOTATA: Taxi man, now I understand you perfectly thank you very much.  Was he a member of any organisation, IFP for instance and what rank did he have when he trained you people?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: He was an IFP member.  He was the commander there.

ADV MOTATA: I take it, correct me if I am mistaken, that you were trained in handling firearms, how to kill, would I be right to say you're saying so?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes, we were told that we were trained for 1994 election, to kill.

ADV MOTATA: Could you just tell us more that you were trained for the 1994 elections to do what, to show people how to vote or to kill people not to vote?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: To kill the ANC leadership.

ADV MOTATA: Did you know which leaders were you supposed to kill from the ANC?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes, I know a few of them.

ADV MOTATA: Would you be kind enough to just give us the few you know?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: The first one was Bongani Msomi in eSikhawini.

ADV MOTATA: Proceed.

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: The second one was Bheki Ntuli in Mtubatuba.

ADV MOTATA: Can you remember only the two?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Mr Nxumalo, here in Eshowe.  Given Mthethwa from Eshowe, Schoolboy from Eshowe, Mr Msweli in Mandini.  Those are the only people who were disturbing the election in KwaZulu Natal.

ADV MOTATA: I understood you to say to us that Eshowe was an IFP stronghold and I realised that for instance Nxmalo and Mthethwa are also from Eshowe.

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: That is true.

ADV MOTATA: Now lastly, you mentioned that when you attacked you were accompanied by the KwaZulu Police ...(indistinct)?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes.

ADV MOTATA: And prior to your attack you held a meeting, do you recall that?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes.

CHAIRPERSON: Were the KwaZulu Police present in that meeting or if not when did they join you or how did they know that you planned this attack?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: The KwaZulu Police would not be present when the decision is taken, but they would be told to go and raid the ANC members after we had taken a decision.  The KwaZulu Police would then be led be Nr Nyawuza where they were supposed to raid.

ADV MOTATA: Would we understand you correctly that the police, that is the KwaZulu Police, were your allies when you attacked the ANC members, would we understand you to say that?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes.

ADV MOTATA: Thank you very much Mr Myeza, I have got no further questions.  Thank you Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: Well will take the short adjournment now. Mr Brink can we resume at two o'clock?

MR BRINK: Yes.

CHAIRPERSON: We adjourn now and resume at two o'clock.
COMMITTEE ADJOURNS
ON RESUMPTION

CHAIRPERSON: ...(inaudible) put to this witness?

MR BRINK: No thank you Mr Chairman.

CHAIRPERSON: Any re-examination?

MR ALBERTS: Just one aspect thank you.
	Before you decided to join the SPU training were you already an IFP member by then?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes.

MR ALBERTS: And when you decided ...(intervention)

CHAIRPERSON: I didn't hear him, sorry.  What is the answer?

INTERPRETER: ...(inaudible)

MR ALBERTS: And when you decided to join the SPU training what was your purpose for joining?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: The reason why I joined the SPU is because I had already been told by Mr Nyawuza that for us to protect the IFP, we had to be trained so that we could carry firearms legally.

MR ALBERTS: And these acts that you did commit, apart from thinking that you would get employment, is there any other reason that prompted you or that made you to do this?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: No, there were no other reasons.

MR ALBERTS: Thank you Mr Chairman I have got nothing further.
NO FURTHER QUESTIONS BY MR ALBERTS

ADV MOTATA: Mr Myeza you were paid by this financial officer, did I hear you correctly?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes.

ADV MOTATA: Where was he from, where did he belong to, IFP, SPU?   From where was this official who was paying you?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I do not know whether this person was a member of the IFP or the SPU's.  He was employed in Parliament at Ulundi.  I do not know what his position was.

ADV MOTATA: In other words you were paid by Ulundi, he was placed at Ulundi?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: Yes, I thought we were paid by the KwaZulu Government.

ADV MOTATA: Thank you Chairperson I have got no further questions.   Thank you Mr Myeza.

MR MALAN: Just one question on the same subject, did you not regard that as employment?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I had an SPU card but I did not regard myself as someone who was permanently employed as a public servant.

MR MALAN: What was your monthly salary there?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I was paid about R2 800.

MR MALAN: If you were not employed what did you think this R2 800 was for?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I thought this is the money that was paid to us because we were trained and we had carried the functions we were trained for.

MR MALAN: Mr Myeza what is employment, is employment not that you are expected to carry out some function?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I was promised that I was going to be employed as a KwaZulu Police officer.  This did not happen, instead I was a mere SPU member.

MR MALAN: Were you employed as a ZP officer?

THULANI MZOKHONA MYEZA: I think I was being used by them to do their job.