Human Rights Violation Hearings — Venda — 1996-10-04

RANGOEZI TSHIKALANGE: Yes.  Where I stay is Tsififi, when I was there I am just normally a Headman by way of saying, but I was not the rightful Chief.
 I am the fourth person, that is not the big issue, because we've got a family tree and the history, that is
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what the Government should look into and investigate that some people were denied their rights and what worried me really was that the White people, some of the White people are senior members in the Government now, these are the ones who tortured me.  I am not going to arrest anybody.
 Even if the Bible there is nothing saying that I have to forgive in the Bible, if you see three times you are to be judged, there is nowhere were it is written that one has to forgive three times or so, in the Bible.

MR LYSTER: Statement that you were banished in June 1969 to the Northern Cape which is many thousands of kilometres, many hundreds of kilometres from here and that you were restricted to a very isolated farm.  You weren't allowed to have contact with any local people except for the local police and that your wife and the child that she was carrying, died at that place, that you weren't allowed to have easy access to proper medical and hospital facilities and as a result, your wife and your child died, is that right?

RANGOEZI TSHIKALANGE: Yes, it is true.

MR LYSTER: And then after many years, after five years the banishment order was lifted in 1974 and it was replaced the same day with a banning order which prevented you from having contact with - how in fact did it work?  What did the banning order mean, did it mean that you could not communicate with more than one or two people at a time, or did it restrict you to a certain area?  Perhaps you can just give us a brief explanation of what the banning order meant?

RANGOEZI TSHIKALANGE: Yes, these people gave me this banning order and told me that there was a letter which was written by the file, saying that I am not expected to have three
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people, I am not supposed to go to church or to the funeral.
 And again whilst I am at home, I am not allowed to go to Louis Trichardt, I couldn't even go to any other place ten kilometre beyond my house, while I was at (indistinct)
 I had to go to the Commissioner to get permission.   Even if the child was sick.  What is surprising is that when you are sick at home, you are also allowed to stay at home and bear children, now these people die whilst you are looking at them.

MR LYSTER: Is that due to the banning and curfew restrictions that were placed upon you, you lost another child Emmanuel Tshikalange - he was only one year old.  He was ill and you could not take him to hospital because of the curfew restrictions on you and that he died as a result of that, is that correct?

RANGOEZI TSHIKALANGE: The child died right in the house.  That was when I was in the bush in the Northern Cape.  I didn't know that these people were sending me there.  If they had sentenced me to jail, there is breakfast, you bath, there is all those facilities, but the jail, the cell they took me, if you were to go now, I don't want to go there, if you are sentenced in jail yourself, that things do happen.
 They only give you R3-00 for food, they only tell you that the ANC people and the (indistinct) people who will give you money, but they only give you R3-00 a month. 
 Now, you only die of sickness.  Even then, she died when I was watching.

MR LYSTER: You say that the banning order and the house arrest order on you were lifted in October 1976 and that thereafter you were restored as Headmen in the Tsififi area and this was after the recommendations which were made by
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the Moswaswa Commission of Enquiry, is that right?

RANGOEZI TSHIKALANGE: Well, not entirely true.  As I am referring you to this people who are the king's people, they are going to give a statement, some of the people did really fought to make me go back.
 If these people really struggled and say they wanted their Headmen and now as I am restored, the Commission after having given recommendation, the year expired before they could even explain to me that I was ... it is not through the leadership of Ramaswana, that is why I am here.
 This people who belonged to my area, they are the ones.  I wasn't restored, the people themselves really struggled.  That is why I am made the Headman.

MR LYSTER: Just tell us briefly, you haven't really informed us, what was the, as you understand, as the reason for your banishment and your banning and your house arrest, what was the reason?  We know who did it, you said it was done in terms of the Black Administration Act of 1927 and the people involved were MC Botha, who was Minister of Bantu Administration as it was then called and the Chief Commissioner for the Northern Transvaal, Mr Leibrandt, but what was their reason for doing this, for banning you to an area in the Northern Cape?

RANGOEZI TSHIKALANGE: Okay, fine, we are talking about this thing, we are rushing these matters otherwise, these people, it was due to the fact that at Humpaphule there was a Headman called Taramepha.  He died later and the other one succeeded him who was just in the place of Mr (indistinct).
 This Taramepha that I mentioned, the ones who made recommendations said that he shall be the one and Taramepha was expelled and had to get to the (indistinct).
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 I realised that there are really some copies.  They made copies, petition, wrote to Prime Minister Verwoerd and the (indistinct) that there shall be some  recorrection because the people themselves did not do that, (indistinct).  Dr (indistinct) was the one who was responsible.  
 That is why on the 9th of August 1965 when the Commissioner of Enquiry led by Reverend, they asked for minutes to confirm that Taramepha was expelled.  If they think Taramepha is mad, the only people who are, they are the ones who are to say he is mad otherwise somebody could have been put there, who was a rightful person.
 That is why I am saying at Humpaphule there is no more than 10 Chiefs, who can say that the Chiefship belonged to ... these people bought Chiefship from (indistinct).  That is why I didn't get support from the people who are now leading.
 The people who did that just bought this Chiefship and I've got documents here how they bribed, how they bought Chiefship.

MR LYSTER: You also mentioned in your statement that your banishment and your deposing caused you severe depression over a period of years, it also removed you from the place where you rightfully should have been and you were not able to promote and encourage development in the area as a result not only you and your family suffer, but the people in the area suffered and we understand that.  We are very pleased to know that you are back now in that area as a Headman.
 The copies of those documents, Dr Ally says that he believes that we do have copies of everything that you have there in front of you and we will in fact, staff at our 
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Johannesburg office are already going through that, those documents in order to ascertain exactly how it came about that you suffered in the way that you did.  What, the people that were responsible and we will be looking at that over the next weeks and months to come.
 But you have given us very clear summary of what happened to you, the consequences of your banishment and we are very grateful that you have come in and given us that information.
 I am going to ask the Chairman now whether he has any questions that he would like to ask.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Don't answer it if it is an unclear question.  You seem to be angered by enlarge to see the people who arrested you, still being in a position of power.  How do you see that being remedied?