Human Rights Violation Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — UNKNOWN

WITNESS:   Yes, I were.  While I tried to run back home the police started shooting, and they shot me.  In my mind when I was hit the bullet entered from this side to the other side and penetrated through my hand.  When they shot me all the people had already dispersed.  I was so confused and I didn't know exactly whether I were at home, or whether I have to continue further or I must go back.  And I had to go out and run out of my place.  I have to sort of pass three families and then I entered the family of Mnigathi.  I knocked at the door at Mnigathi family.  The police were still shooting and they were hitting people.  I could hear people screaming and everything was happening.  At the Mnigathi family they couldn't open for me, because the way the police were harassing the people if you opened for a person to come into the house they would come into your house and even beat you, the owner of the house, and they sort of like - it happened that one whisper that they opened for me, and they also agreed to take me back home.  When he opened I just hold him and push on my back, and I jump over him and get into the house.  When I get into the house and then I fall inside there, and then I was weak by that time.  And then I realised where I were.  I could speak, but I didn't have the energy to.

MR LYSTER: Can I ask you just a bit here?  This police you said they shot you.  Which police?  Were they the SAP or the KwaZulu Police?

WITNESS:   These were the SAP.  After I have fallen on the ground the father of the house tried to close the door.  He couldn't close the door because he was also afraid the way he saw me in blood.  He started to call me and ask me exactly what happened, and I couldn't answer him.  He got out of the house, he saw the police.  When they see the door opening they were coming to hit me.  When they arrived he told them what happened.  When they arrived at me I was asleep, and one of them like took off his jacket and teared my cloth, and he pushed his finger through the hole bullet.  I tried to jump and tried to move, to show that I feel the pain.  On my other hand, my left hand, the bullet couldn't get out, it was still inside my hand, and I was sleeping on my hand.  The other one pulled me out of the house and he leave me.  And they asked this man, "Do you know this girl?" and they said, "Where does she stay?"  And then they took this man, they sort of like took him to my place and then explained everything.  There was one of my sisters who was also shot.  I didn't where she was shot at that time.  They took her also and they took my mum - my dad was at work - to show me.  I was already in the car by that time, and they took my mum to show her how that I was injured.

MR LYSTER: Did they also took Lindiwe into the van?

WITNESS:   Yes, they did.  They said my mum she'll talk to me.  When my mum saw me as the blood was coming out she started crying.  And then they were trying to find who was going to go with us, and my mum was sick and was old so she couldn't come with us.  They have to ask one neighbour, a lady, another lady of the Zako family, and the police started changing and said, "No, we are not going to take them, they must stay behind."

MR LYSTER: Can you tell us what was the name of this lady you talk about?

WITNESS:   And they said they must remain behind.  They didn't want to, and then they said, "Okay, get into the car.  Let's go."  As I was lying there, staying there, there was this Indian man, and then we saw another young boy coming, Nhlanhla Zondi.  He was also injured on his leg.  And we sit in the van.  The police were talking to each other outside.  While we were sitting there the one Doris Khumalo came.  She was arrested and - she was arrested by the police and she was mishandled.

MR LYSTER: Were all these people shot?

WITNESS:   Yes, they were shot.  They took us.  They didn't tell us whether they were taking us to hospital or somewhere else.  When they arrived at the place called Orient Park they sort of like kicked us out of the van.

MR LYSTER: Can you tell us more about the Orient Park?  What kind of place was it?

WITNESS:   This was just a place.  It's a road and there is a dam on the other side, and then there's sort of - out of the car on the left side.  This was sort of like a bush place or a desert place.  We couldn't get help because they just left us there and we were injured.  Another car which was behind us there was a young girl who was injured.  They took her out, and then they took some knives and they started sort of like operate on her, and she was shot on her head and on the body.

MR LYSTER: How did they operate on her?

WITNESS:   They were trying to sort of operate on her to take out the blood.  She was so injured and full of soil, and she was not married(?).  It means they have been trying to sort of like extract the bullet, but they couldn't do it.  We see that it was so cold.  And then an ambulance came, they put us into an ambulance, and we left.  They didn't want to put the girl with us.  They refused.

MR LYSTER: Is this the ambulance people?

WITNESS:   No, the police.  The other woman, they didn't want to put the woman with us.  We didn't know - the ambulance took us to the hospital.  When we arrived and then we got some medical help.  The next morning ... (intervention)

MR LYSTER: How long did you stay in hospital?

WITNESS:   I don't remember how long.  It's like just a month and some weeks, a few weeks.  I was still young.  I can't remember well.  While we were there in the morning the police arrived with some other women.  They told us, "As you are here you have committed a crime, and when you come out of here you will be arrested," and I asked them, "What have I done myself?" because we were not staying in the same ward.  I asked them, "What have I done?"  They said, "We will tell you as soon as you arrive in court."   Before on that point in your statement they said you committed a crime because you were toyi-toying while the state of emergency was imposed.   ---   No, they were talking about toyi-toying, not about the state of emergency.

MR LYSTER: Yes, they were talking about toyi-toying.

WITNESS:   When I was at the hospital they were sort of regarding me.  There were these women ... (intervention)

MR LYSTER: Are these women sent so that they can sort of like guard you?  Did they tell you their names?  Were they police?

WITNESS:   No, no, they were not in uniform, but they were brought by police wearing uniform.

MR LYSTER: Can you go on.

WITNESS:   When they called each other they didn't call each other by names.  They didn't want us to hear or know them.

MR LYSTER: How did they call them?

WITNESS:   They just used to sort of like use body language, and they used to sort of like change shifts at 6 o'clock, someone coming at two, the other one would come at 6 o'clock in the evening.  And they were all brought by police.  I stayed in hospital until I was better.  When I was better they told me I will be discharged and I had to go home.  While I was waiting for my medication, medicine and tablets ... (intervention)

MR LYSTER: When you were in hospital were you operated?

WITNESS:  Yes, they operated on me.

MR LYSTER: Continue.

WITNESS:   When the time around for me to be discharged to go home this woman who was guarding me left me just a bit to go and call the police.

MR LYSTER: You were still in hospital?