Human Rights Violation Hearings — Soweto — 1996-07-23

CHAIRPERSON: As we indicated earlier on we are grateful to have many people who are coming here, not to give their testimonies, but to express their solidarity.  Again we are grateful to have Ovavus Sulu.  It is really a source of encouragement to have him even at the time when we were not celebrating liberation, but taking a painful journey of looking at the scars of the apartheid.  Once more we are grateful to have you.
 I will then ask the first witness for today, the second witness for today to, Christina Buthulezi, to come forward and take the oath.  Christina, I go to you.  I would like to ask you to take an oath before the Commission.

CHRISTINA BUTHULEZI: (Duly sworn in, states).

CHAIRPERSON: Lady, we would like you to tell the Commission more about yourself and how it came that you are now sitting in a wheelchair.

CHRISTINA BUTHULEZI: I am Christina Buthulezi.  This is a cold Wednesday.  It was 1976, June 16.  I was going to school and I was not aware that there will be a demonstration.

CHAIRPERSON: I would like to disturb you a bit.  Can you just explain to us your home background and tell us how many are you at home.

CHRISTINA BUTHULEZI: At home we are six.  There are three boys and three girls.  One boy passed away.  We are left with my
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father.  He is not working.  I have a small child by the name of Ayanda.  She was six years on the 24th of June and my sister next to me is Bongi.  When I got injured she was still young.

CHAIRPERSON: You may please continue and tell us more about the school you attended at the time when the June 16 riots started.

CHRISTINA BUTHULEZI: I was schooling at Senoane Junior Secondary.  My principal was Mr Gabindin.  I was doing standard seven.  On the day I got injured, on the 16th, as I have already said I was not aware that there would be a demonstration.  We were preparing ourselves to write our exams.  A group of children came.  They told us that we will be demonstrating.  As we were doing maths, history in Afrikaans it was too difficult for us to understand those subjects.  We were marching, it was quiet.  We were fighting for our rights.  We were travelling from one school to another.
 When we arrived at Morris Isaacs School we found that they had already left the school and they had left us behind.  The others were at Orlando.  When we were about to arrive at Mfolo Park they stopped us and they gave us the news that there is a child who has been injured and his name was Hector Petersen.  After hearing about the death of Hector Petersen we were so angry as students and we started burning everything, anything that belonged to the Government.  The way it was it was so difficult.  We were all afraid.  When I came back home after the demonstration I was afraid.  My parents were so strict.  He told me that when he came back he saw some children who were so angry and everything was burning outside.  I just kept quiet and I told my father that I was not at the demonstration.  
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 Late that afternoon my aunt took my books and I decided I will go fetch my books.  As I was coming back I saw police vehicles coming by.  There were so many of them.  They were a convoy shooting around at random.  That is just when I got injured.  I was unconscious and I regained my consciousness after three days.

CHAIRPERSON: Maybe, if I may disturb you.  Please explain to the Commission that when you were coming back from your aunt's place with your books, where was it actually?  Where was your aunt's place.

CHRISTINA BUTHULEZI: It is not so far away from my place.  It is just one, two streets apart.  As I was coming by, just before crossing, I was on the pavement and that is where they shot me.  I fell down immediately.

CHAIRPERSON: Did you see the police vehicles approaching you?  Maybe explain to us the scene.  What happened exactly?  Were the police shooting at random or were they actually directing to you?  Actually, what was happening?

CHRISTINA BUTHULEZI: There were a group of students, pupils.  Some offices were on fire.  As the police vehicle was approaching they were already shooting.  Just when, as I saw them, the police vehicle I was trying to go back where I was coming from, but it was late then.  Lo and behold, I was shot.  I was not the only one who was injured.  There were some others.  I do not know some of them, but some I do know.  We were hospitalised together.
 What hurts me most is at the hospital they would come with firearms.  They would actually point guns at us lying on the beds asking us do you know power.  Were you a leader at school in any way?  There was actually a time when they brought a picture where Petersen was lying down after he was SOWETO HEARING GAUTENG PROVINCE
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shot.  The girl that was next to Hector on the picture, they were thinking I am the one.  They actually insisted that I must say yes, I am the one.  Some, when they came to the hospital, some were phoning actually, some were coming in person at home to check whether I am back from the hospital.  Now, one doctor that I cannot remember quite well thought that why were they disturbing me because they were carrying firearms.  I could not fight with them.  Why would they not come in peace to talk to me, converse with me instead of bringing firearms and intimidating me in the hospital.

CHAIRPERSON: Maybe it will help you.  Please switch off your mike.  At the time when you gained your consciousness, before they came with their firearms, would you remember when the doctors told you that you cannot walk anymore, you are paralysed, because you say you regained consciousness in the hospital.  Do you remember what happened exactly because we, as the Commission, we should see to it that that is where you were injured and what we could do.

CHRISTINA BUTHULEZI: You know, when I regained my consciousness, I felt so numb and so heavy and I was thinking somehow that maybe I was even trying to run away from the hospital.  After some time I asked one of the doctors as to what happened, if he could explain to me.  I would like to stand up, but I cannot.  I want to go to the ladies, I cannot.  Was he trying to run away?  Please explain what happened, because I do not remember.  Then he said, please lie down, I will be back to you.  As the days went by they came back to me and they told me that after five years I will be walking.  It is just that there are minor things that are wrong with my spine, but up till today I am still on the wheelchair, I cannot walk.
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CHAIRPERSON: Maybe you can explain that after you were discharged from the hospital, what happened to your life.

CHRISTINA BUTHULEZI: When I was discharged, got back from the hospital many people use to give me moral support.  Even my own family although my mum was so weak.  Even now I believe that she died because of my being injured because she left her work so that she could take care of me at home.  The community, our neighbours use to come pay visits encouraging me that I should not be worried.  I was actually fighting for our rights.  I could not understand, though, as to why they were saying those things, but people were coming by and they were telling me those words of encouragement up to the point where I was strong.
 I never got any kind of compensation.  However, some of us were, I mean, we use to ask ourselves whether did you get compensation or not?  Some did get some form of compensation and, yet, some of us never.  My parents tried to fight and push statements about my being injured.  I think they were threatened somehow.  They were being told that I was a leader, a political leader.  I was surprised, really, because I did not know and I was actually lost, I did not know what was happening.

CHAIRPERSON: Maybe you can go on ahead and relate to us how do you make a living?