Human Rights Violation Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — UNKNOWN

WITNESS:   It was in the morning on the 17th of May in 1990.  I was working at Town Hill.  My husband used to take me to and from work whenever I was on duty, and he would fetch me from work and take me back home.  On this particular day he left me at work.  He said he would come and fetch me in the afternoon.  At about half past nine, still in the morning, the sister in charge in the ward called me in.  I went to her.  She told me that I was needed at the office.  I asked them what the matter was.  She said I should go and hear what was going to be said at the office.  I proceeded there.  As I was approaching the door I saw the matrons also coming towards me.  Then Matron Newman held my hand.  She took me inside the office.  As I got into the office I looked around.  I saw Virginia.  Virginia is my husband's sister's child.  She was with Doris Shabalala.  I panicked.  I asked Virginia as to what she was doing there.  She didn't look at me in the eye.  I asked as to whether my husband had been killed because he had been getting death threats over the phone.  Virginia kept quiet, she didn't answer me.  The matron tried to calm me down.  I told them to tell me if my husband had been killed.  Virginia said, "Yes, they have killed your husband."  I asked where he died.  She told me that he died in his kombi at Umlahlankosi.  I got very confused.  The matron tried to calm me down.  They took me and put me into a kombi.  We went to Imbali.  As I was just approaching Imbali there's a downslope as you approach.  I saw the roof of my kombi, and there were many people there gathered.  Then I tried to look and see, because the kombi hadn't yet stopped.  As soon as the kombi stopped I got out.  When I got out I slipped and fell.  They lifted me up.  I ran towards the kombi.  He was inside the kombi.  When I was still on my way there the police came and tried to restrain me.  They started hitting me with the backs of their guns, trying to shove me backwards.  I went backwards.  They said I mustn't get any nearer.  I asked them, "How could I not come closer to my husband, because I want to see that he's really dead?"  The other one - there was a short one, a boer, who shoved me with the back of the gun.  I fell down and sat down.  As I was sitting there I looked around and I saw this kombi.  I saw that where it was standing the kombi had tilted a bit.  I said they must try and get some rods to balance the kombi so that it can be straight.  They refused.  At that time the people were very angry and they said, "We are going to get some rods."  They went to look for these poles to support the kombi, because it was standing on its side.  When I looked at the windows all the windows were shattered, as well as the windscreen.  The only window that was left was the rear window.  I just sat there dumbfounded.  Then later on we saw the hearse coming.  It had come to fetch my husband.  I think by now it was at about 1 o'clock.  I stood up because I wanted to go and see my husband.  They said I mustn't get any nearer.  I was told by the police.  They said I mustn't get any nearer.  One person came to whisper in my ear and told me that my husband was killed by Nathi.  At that time I was very confused.  They ran into Jerome's place and they changed their gear, whatever they were wearing.  Jerome was also driving a car.  I don't remember whether it was a Toyota or what.  Then he collected these men who had killed my husband.  Then the police were alerted and told that the people who had just killed my husband were now running away.  The police never chased them, they just stood guard on the corpse.  They took my husband and put him into the hearse.  When I tried to come and have a look they chased me away.  They said I must go back.  If I want to see my husband I will go and see him at Modderbly(?).  I started crying, and I was worried and concerned as to what transport we were going to use to go and see my husband.  The police refused us permission to take the kombi.  They said the kombi was supposed to be taken to the police station.  I refused.  I wanted the kombi to be taken home.  We ultimately took the kombi home.  There was a support group at that time comprised of Monica, as well as other women.  We stayed there until it was late, until the following day.  There was no policeman who came to my house to ask me about my husband or to tell me anything about my husband.  I started talking to my daughter, who was at the university.  I said they must go and tell my daughter that her father had died.  I hired a car.  They had fetched the one who was at Ndumiso and they had fetched even the other ones who were married.  I stayed there.  Just as it was getting dark they had brought this one from the university.  When she got in she said, "What has happened?  What did my father die?  What did he do to deserve such death?"  We sat in there, as well as the support group.  Thereafter we prepared for the funeral.  I heard rumour that Inkatha said I mustn't bury my husband at Mountain Rise, I must go and bury my husband at Emnambithi, because that's where he was born.  I told them that my husband will not be buried in Emnambithi, he was going to be buried at Mountain Rise.  Everything else that will happen thereafter I am well prepared for it, because I don't care any more.  We continued to prepare for the funeral.  We went to bury him at Mountain Rise.  The people in Mountain Rise - Jerome died on the 16th.  That is the Inkatha member.  My husband died on the 17th.  They told me that we, the Ngcobo family, should go and bury in the morning at about 12.  We were not supposed to bury at the same time, because Inkatha and UDF were at loggerheads.  It happened like that.  We went to Methodist Church, because that is where we attend church at Imbali.  That's where the funeral procession was.  People were so many.  The inspectors led us to Mountain Rise.  I don't know what happened when we came back because we were driving in front.  After we had buried my husband there came policemen.  It was towards dawn.  After we had buried on Saturday it was on a Tuesday.  They knocked at round about 1 o'clock.  They knocked, kicked the doors, and I asked who it was.  They told me we should open, they were the police.  I asked them what they were looking for.  They said they were looking for guns.  I asked them whether somebody had told them whether there were guns.  They started getting very violent and kicking the doors.  I told them I won't open the door for them because it was at night.  If they wanted guns they must come in the morning or during the day when everybody else could see them.  They started kicking the door, hitting it.  It ultimately opened.  They got inside, they started searching.  They turned the house upside-down.  They were asking who the owner of the house was, and the children pointed at me.  They were asking where my husband was.  I knew they knew that my husband had died, because one of the policemen who was there when my husband was killed was also there on that particular day.  I asked him, "How come you come and ask me where my husband is, because you were present on that particular day when he died?"  They went out and came back the following day.   When they came in they said they wanted to see my sons.  I told them that my sons were asleep, and I pointed to where my sons were sleeping.  When they got to my sons they started assaulting them.  As they were hitting Mandla they took him and put him into a van.  They told him to go and point out some guns because we were harbouring criminals in the house.  I told them that nobody was staying in the house, I was staying with my sons.  They took Mandla along.  It was towards dawn.  I think it was about half past one.  They took Mandla with.  We stayed the whole day not knowing where Mandla was.  At night Mandla came.  I asked him where he was coming from.  He said the policemen took him to Sekland(?), and I asked him what had happened.  He was swollen all over the face, and he said he had been tortured with a tube and he had been told that he must point out certain guns.  Ultimately they took the tube out and they told him to go home.  The most painful experience that I had was that they take a child, but when he was supposed to come back they just threw him in the street.  He had to come back all by himself.  I don't remember whether it was on a Saturday or Sunday.  Thamsanqa, as well as his peers, were playing at the neighbour's place.  We heard a gunshot.  I asked as to which direction was this gunshot coming from.  Then there came a little boy who came to tell me that Thami had been shot.  Then they said Thami didn't die.  They had shot him in the stomach and the bullet came through the arm.  I just couldn't go out at that time, I felt very numb.  Thami was taken by a certain car.  The car couldn't start and people were trying to push it.  Just at that moment another gunshot went off.  Thami was taken to the hospital.  He was attended to.  He stayed four or five days.  I am not sure any more.  Thami came back.