Amnesty Hearings — Cape Town — 1998-09-08

NORMAN ARENDSE: Mr Tanda, just tell us again.  At the moment you serve in the SANDF, in the Defence Force?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That's correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: How do you - this is a general question, how do you see your life at present, currently?  How do you see your life at the moment and where do you see yourself going?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: I'll try and respond to your question although it is a very difficult question.
	I look like a child who is just born and I was in prison, involved in other things, and to me it's like a new life.  I'm not yet prepared to say whether I'm going forward or backwards but I am prepared.  I wish to go on and lead a normal life just like other people.

NORMAN ARENDSE: I just want to comment on this.  There is a general criticism from certain members of the public that where amnesty is granted to people like yourself, where you've killed other people, that you are being let loose on the public and that you are likely to commit the same offences again, do you want to comment on that?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: I can say the people of South Africa must know that we were involved in the struggle because I was mentally disturbed but I was there to liberate the nation that was oppressed.
	As I'm saying, the times of conflict is gone now and we are living with people.  Wherever we live, we live just like other normal people.   And secondly, they mustn't think that a revolution wasn't there, we were just pushing a revolution, because even the liberation that the people are talking about today, no matter who can say what, we've got to admit that those were the bullets of APLA, AZAPO and MK that managed to put us where we are today.  
	We must not forget that because everyone knows that there are members of APLA who are in jails today and the members of Azania and ANC and MK.  They are there because they wanted to liberate their nation and therefore they see us as people who are troublesome by trying to liberate our nation.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Then just lastly, did you gain materially, did you gain anything, did you profit, did you make a profit from committing these offences?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: In APLA everyone was a volunteer.  We were not benefitting anything after an operation.  We were involved in the operations because we loved our nation so much.   The only people who benefitted is the nation that was oppressed at the time.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Just like lastly and finally, ...[intervention]

CHAIRPERSON: How many times is that final?

NORMAN ARENDSE: Just this once.
	What is your attitude towards white people in this country, who live in this country, your compatriots?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: In politics here in South Africa we never hated white people because of their colour as the other people were deceiving, people saying so.  We regard white people as our brothers and sisters, but the problem is the system that they were using, the system that the government was using at the time.  We don't have any attitude towards them, any bad attitude.
	Even now we are with them, we are working with them in the National Defence Force and there is no problem.  Even in places where we live we do visit friends who are staying with whites but we don't hate them because of their colour but it's because of their actions during the apartheid regime.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Thank you Chairperson, I've got no further questions.
NO FURTHER QUESTIONS BY MR ARENDSE

CHAIRPERSON: Is this applicant not involved in the other matters?

NORMAN ARENDSE: I speak under correction, no.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes.
	 Have the identities of your victims, the people that you killed, has that ever been made known to you?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: No, I haven't seen them.  I only saw them when I met with my legal representative.

CHAIRPERSON: I don't understand that.  I've said the identities of the people that you killed.  You say you saw them when you met your legal representative?  Just clear that up.

NORMAN ARENDSE: I think he's referring to the information which we got out of the police docket but the names and details of the deceased doesn't appear from there, we just discussed it with Mr Tanda.

CHAIRPERSON: Have you any questions to ask?

ADV SANDI: Mr Tanda, just to go back to the Cross Roads Police Attack where you killed those two people, one of whom was a policeman and the other one was an employee of Spoornet.  Now you mentioned two names there, that is Graham and Simon.  Did you know Graham and Simon before you called them to the house where you were staying at Site C?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes, that is correct.

ADV SANDI: I notice that in your statement you say that you briefed them in full about the operation, what did you tell them?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: I told them that I want to get an order from comrade Power to start involving people in the operations.  I chose Graham and Simon and I told them that we would be going to Cross Roads to check the target that we can disarm with the aim of getting more arms.

CHAIRPERSON: Just for the purposes of clearing up the record, you mentioned the word Power, that's the same person as Mzala?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes.

CHAIRPERSON: I think we should one name throughout these proceedings otherwise the record, if it is read by somebody, might be confusing.

ADV SANDI: Thank you Chairman.
	So when you saw these two people you were not really expecting to see them walking in that area, were you?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: As I say the attack didn't take place far from the Cross Road Police Station.  I knew that police  are patrolling in the community.

ADV SANDI: If you had not come across these two people, what would you have done that evening?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: As I'm talking about the people who were patrolling, I knew that I would get some policemen patrolling in the area.  I knew that for sure.

ADV SANDI: Why were the police patrolling the area?  Were there any incidents happening in that area?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: If you'd notice that from 1986 up until today, the Cross Roads, time and again there are conflicts among the African people in that area and because of those conflicts the police are there to patrol the areas where the Africans are residing.  As in the white areas the police would be there, even if they are there to check on thugs or for whatever reasons but they are there.  They are always there patrolling all the time.

ADV SANDI: Thank you Tata.

CHAIRPERSON: Do you wish to put any questions to the applicant?

MR MAPOMA: No, Chairperson, I have no questions.
NO QUESTIONS BY MR MAPOMA

CHAIRPERSON: Yes, you are excused.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Thank you Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: You may step down.
WITNESS EXCUSED