Human Rights Violation Hearings — Queenstown — 1996-07-22

B MDINGI: There are about three or four people, including Mundu, who want to help in the investigation.  Mundu particularly wants to do this, because he was with Andile on the day in which he was killed, he has promised that he will submit a statement.  Mxoliso Faku in East London, was in detention when Andile was killed.
 When he was detained, was shown papers saying that he was going to do the same to you as we had done to Andile, so he would also like to submit a statement to the Commission outlining the threats that he also received.
 Somebody else that would also like to submit a statement is Denma Mntungwane, who's from Queenstown.  Who is in Cape Town at the moment.  When Andile was killed, he was standing trial and he served a prison sentence in Robben Island and details of Andile's death were used to traumatise him during lunch breaks, during his trial and when he would go back to the stand, he would be told to please say what happened during lunch to change his emotional situation.

MR SANDI: Is that all you would like to say for now Ms Balakazi?

B MDINGI: I think so sir.

MR SANDI: Is that also all that you would like to say Ms Matshoba?  Are you satisfied with what your daughter has said in connection with the details of your son's death?

UNKNOWN: Yes, that is all.

MR SANDI: Thank you very much.  Thank you Mr  Chairperson.  QUEENSTOWN HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
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BONGANI FINCA: Dr Ramashala?

MAPULE RAMASHALA: My question is directed at Ms Matshoba.  Could you go back to think about how your life was changed, to talk about how your life was changed as a result of the killing of your son?

UNKNOWN: I was never very happy after that.  I was very hurt by Andile's death.  I've never been the same.
 I've never been well again.

MAPULE RAMASHALA: Could you explain a little bit about what you mean by I've never been well again?

UNKNOWN: After that I became somebody that would forget and sometimes I would not even know what I was doing, I was very nervous.
 It is just that I became somebody who was very nervous, even though I never went for treatment for this condition, but when I received - when this would happen to me I would get medication from the hospital and I would be a bit better and there'd be nothing after that.

MAPULE RAMASHALA: Please forgive me for being persistent.  I'm trying to get a picture of how your life was affected.  When you say nervous, were you sleepless, were you agitated and do you remember the kind of medication that you received?

UNKNOWN: I had palpitations after that.

MAPULE RAMASHALA: Ms Matshoba, if your son had not died what would he be today, in other words, what were your expectations of your son?

UNKNOWN: If my child had not passed away, he would have been something today, I would have been dependent on him.  He would have been working for me.

MAPULE RAMASHALA: Are you receiving any - how do you survive today?  Are you receiving any pension?
QUEENSTOWN HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
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UNKNOWN: Yes, I receive a pension.

MAPULE RAMASHALA: Mr Chairman, I wonder if Ms Matshoba' daughter could enlighten us a little more about your mother's health and other things that we, you think we should know.

B MDINGI: I am the eldest in a family with 8 children.  My father was killed in a car accident when I was 14 together with a younger sister of mine and another family friend.
 In 1983 my brother was killed in Jo'burg and allegedly from a car accident and was buried by the police before we were notified of this.
 These are all the things that I feel have a contributed to my mother's poor health.
 Another child died before the child of Andile, in 1985.  I believe that it is as a result of all these things that my mother had to stop working before retirement age.
 And also in 1988 both my grandmothers, who had all the years seemed well and able bodies, suddenly died from pneumonia as well as my uncle, Daduxa, which has left my mother to be responsible for an extended family.
 And that responsibility is transferred to me.  Oh, Andile was an artist, he used to contribute to student magazines and other newspapers, that were called alternative newspapers of the time.
 People used to come to Jo'burg to visit her and this happened even after Andile had died, asking Andile to do some specific drawings.  He used to help his teachers with audio visuals to help them in their teaching.
 He was poetic in his writings.  I remember an essay that we discussed with one of his teachers to whom I had become very close because of him, where he was writing about QUEENSTOWN HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
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himself in 10 years time.
 He was only 18 at the time.  Unlike an average teenager, his writing went something like this:  Men has created laws to oppress fellow men and because of injustices that I see in society today, my ambition is to be a Human Rights Lawyer.
 Those writings were given to journalists and when I tried to trace them, somebody said they could have been destined for the international defence and aid fund, but I have never been able to trace any of those writings.
 So I have no doubt that he would occupy an important role in society, but most likely as a lawyer.

MAPULE RAMASHALA: Thank you very much.  Now I would like to come to you.  Your brother was living with you when he was killed.  I would like to know how your life was changed by this.

B MDINGI: I think Andile was everybody's favourite in the family, very supportive, very disciplined and communicating easily equally with adults as well as my children.
 I remember how he used to laugh when he was watching TV with my children who wanted to know what was being said, because they couldn't understand English.
 When he would just find one word far from what was being said to tell my children what was happening, so in a sense he was a pillar of strength to most of us in the family.
 The trauma that was brought about by his death, especially because I, because of all this experience in the family, I am very protective of my mother and here was somebody whom I was relying because he was the most sober, with all due respect, of all my brothers.
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 And there his life ended at a very early age, so in a sense, that has left an added responsibility on my shoulders, because I have my family and I still have to care for my mother's family as well as my younger brothers.
 But most of all, I think the emotional scars are left in my children who were six and seven and a half at the time, who were very close to Andile, who witnessed what happened to him.
 I remember my son, who was six at the time, when he heard us talking that we were getting a pathologist to come and look at Andile's body, I can recall his disappointment when he heard that no, this does not mean that Andile would be alive and well again because he thought that if a Doctor was coming to work with Andile's body, there were so many of who loved Andile who could maybe get the Doctor to extract, you know, breath from us to revive Andile.
 So, at his age of six, he thought that that was what would happen to bring Andile back.  So those are all the scars that cannot be taken away.

MAPULE RAMASHALA: My last question.  In your opinion, do you think your mother needs immediate help here and when was the last time she consulted a Doctor?

B MDINGI: She consults a Doctor regularly.  I would say at least once in three months and because I'm in Cape Town and as such we have access to Doctors, you have the Groote Schuur and specialists, every now and then I have to transport her to Cape Town to come for treatment.   So I think she does need attention.

MAPULE RAMASHALA: Thank you very much.