Human Rights Violation Hearings — Uitenhage — 1996-08-26

CHAIRPERSON: Are you both going to swear?

PANEL MEMBER: What is your name?
Francina Ntopela is my name.

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: (Sworn duly states).

FRANCINA NTOPELA: (Sworn duly states).

CHAIRPERSON: We welcome you ladies and we thank you that you have come to appear before this 
Commission. We shall now hand over to Revd Xundu to lead the witness. 
REVD.

XUNDU: Thank you Mr Chairman.
 We greet you Wendy. By the way where is your home Wendy?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: My home is in New Brighton.
REVD.

XUNDU: What is your clan name?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: My clan name is Madiba.
REVD.

XUNDU: By the way, your story states that you were working for the Department of Health and 
Welfare here in Port Elizabeth. Could you now tell this Commission what work were you doing at the time?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: I Wendy Ramathe used to work for the Department of Health and we used to look at the 
welfare of the people and this was a very big job. 
 On the 29th July 1986, I used to work with Albertina Dlanjwa.
REVD.

XUNDU: Just before the 29th, could you tell us that you also used to deliver food parcels together 
with Albertina and people used to queue up for these food parcels. These were people from Soweto, is that 
true?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: Yes, it is like that.
REVD.

XUNDU: Now, when did it all start that you should be suspected, whereby people started to have 
doubts about you?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: We used to work hand in hand with the people and this suspicion that people had later on, 
became a surprise to us. We used to look into the needs of the people. Then on the 29th July, I got a 
telephone call from Albertina's husband, telling me that Mrs Dlanjwa was not well and he was asking me to 
accompany her to see a doctor in Corsten.
 At 3.30 after my rounds I then went to Mrs Dlanjwa's house and there were visitors from Transkei 
and some other people who had problems, because that is what they used to do, since we did not have an 
office of our own. People used to come to us and then we would look into their needs and their problems and 
give what is appropriate.
 Firstly, in that Zwide area, we saw that there was suffering and a lot of facilities were lacking, there 
were no creches, this was not the first project. There used to be a house owned by the Municipality in 
Siyongwana, so we investigated and looked at this house to be used as a creche.
 In 1982 we got it and some children were kept there and it was named Ntlalontle, because it was 
expressing that we wanted good health for our people.
 People from the locality worked there. Then again, we could see that some people were sending 
children to this creche when they were actually doing nothing. We decided to keep these elderly people busy. 
So as to curb their suffering we taught them wonderbox, we taught them how to knit socks and even the 
young women who were unemployed, we decided to keep them occupied by teaching them handwork.
REVD.

XUNDU: I remember that you had a remarkable work, which was well known to most people at the 
time?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: Yes, it is like that.
REVD.

XUNDU: I am listening to your story. I now want you to tell us about this particular incident of the 
day which gave you a great shock, because there had been no indication that people were not in favour of 
this? I still remember even the "roldebuck" that used to be sold there. So, you found people throwing petrol 
bombs at you?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: On the 29th, a young boy of about 15 years came into my house and I was from work. In 
front, I was with Mrs Dlanjwa who was talking on the telephone and there were two elderly women next to 
the door. 
 This boy passed and I saw him cutting and disconnecting the phone and I was shocked. He was 
dressed in a Khaki shorts and I saw him taking out something that he hit on the floor and I could see it was a 
petrol bomb. Thereafter there was fire.
 My first reaction was to jump for these old people who were sitting next to the door and Mrs 
Dlanjwa also helped me. There were people in the bedroom, here in Mrs Dlanjwa's house. They screamed, 
called out "Wendy, your head is on fire", and then I tried to put off the fire. We ran towards the kitchen and 
this boy again exploded another petrol bomb and there was a big flame in front and at the back and there was 
no way out. The doors were locked with burglar proofs.
REVD.

XUNDU: Do you think the neighbours were responsible for this or do you think that this was 
politically motivated?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: What I think is that there is some political influence in all this because, a little bit after that, 
at the time we were burning, there was one child who pulled the burglar door and we saw a hippo parked 
outside as we were jumping out through the window.
REVD.

XUNDU: What was this hippo doing?

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: There were some white men standing next to the hippo, they were just watching. They 
were not doing anything because as I was going out I could see they were just standing and doing nothing.
REVD.

XUNDU: You say, in that house there used to be mealie meal and so on. Did the people do any 
looting on that day.

WENDY SIZEKA RAMATHE: The one sitting next to me is the one who had a chance to see everything because I just 
went out and ran out.
REVD.

XUNDU: Did you identify any of these people who attacked your home? Is she the one who is 
going to answer, if so, then give her a chance. 
 Mama, tell us how are you connected to this story, just tell us, were you just an eye witness or do 
you have a lot of information as you were the person who was helping Mrs Dlanjwa?

FRANCINA NTOPELA: Mrs Nontsikelelo Dlanjwa is my sister. She comes after me. When I left my house, she was 
booked off by the doctor because of high blood pressure.
 I did my washing and I decided to go and help her. When I got there, I found Mrs Myila who is our 
sister-in-law together with her son. My sister was sleeping in the bedroom and they were all in one bedroom. 
I helped with whatever, preparing food. In front there was an office and there were two women there in that 
office. Mrs Wendy who used to work with my sister came. At the time there was this telephone call from my 
niece, I thought it was for me, but Mrs Ramethe Wendy said, "No, the telephone call was for Mrs Dlanjwa" 
who went out of the bedroom to receive the telephone call.
 I then decided to go and take the washing from outside with the intention to prepare supper. For a 
short while, I just went out and I looked round and I saw some smoke and this house was facing some 
shacks. I thought the smoke was from the shacks and I saw more and more smoke coming out of one of the 
windows from my sister's house. I then turned, when I was getting into the yard, my sister was in flames and 
she was wrapped in an apron and I heard her crying "why are you burning me, why don't you tell me when 
you are dissatisfied".
 When I got into the yard, I saw some young boys. Billy was one of them, Mongezi of Mgengo was 
another one.  Matega from Mgengo was another one, Temba.
 All these children, Temba came from Fumba and Maboetie was one of them. They were of the 
same family, the Gondwana family.
REVD.

XUNDU: Are these children still there?

FRANCINA NTOPELA: They were masked and they were coming out of my sister's house.
REVD.

XUNDU: Do you still see them? After that incident, do you see them now or you last saw them 
then?