Human Rights Violation Hearings — East London — 1997-06-11

CHAIRPERSON: Bongani Nondula, Nomvuyiseko Forosi, Mtutuzeli Sibewu and Michael Nothwala.   We welcome you Bongani Nondula, Nomvuyiseko Forosi, Mtutuzeli Sibewu and we would like our Reverend Xundu to help you take an oath.

REV XUNDU: Let me start with you Bongani.

BONGANI NONDULA: (Duly sworn in, states).

REV XUNDU: Thank you.

NOMVUYISEKO FOROSI: (Duly sworn in, states).

REV XUNDU: Thank you.

MTUTUZELI SIBEWU: (Duly sworn in, states).

REV XUNDU: Thank you.  Mr Chairperson, they have been properly sworn in.

CHAIRPERSON: We will ask Mr Sandi to lead you with questions on behalf of the Commission.

ADV SANDI: Thank you Mr Chairperson.  Let us start with Mr Nondula.  Mr Nondula, when I am looking at your statement I see that you are going to talk about different occasions when you would be detained and tortured from 1977.  Is that correct Mr Nondula?

BONGANI NONDULA: Yes, that is correct.

ADV SANDI: These incidents started in 1977?

BONGANI NONDULA: Yes, until 1987.

ADV SANDI: Let us start with 1977, the first incident.  Where were you arrested and who was arresting you in 1977?

BONGANI NONDULA: In 1977 on the first of October a week after we buried Steve Biko, it was on a Saturday morning.  My mother woke me up.  I could see the way she woke up, I could see that was she was apprehensive.  I saw a policeman, a Black policeman, and I found out that it was Mr Nhonhonho and there were also White policemen with him.  My mother gave me my clothes and I put on my clothes.  We left.  They asked me whether I was Bongani Nondula and they took me to Mdantsane Police Station in NU1.
 When we got to the police station I was taken to a van.  I was alone.  I think it was three in the morning at that time.  It was still dark.  They left me there and I could see that some vans were coming in and they were picking up people, taking them to Mdantsane Station.

ADV SANDI: Excuse me Mr Nondula, at the time of your arrest, were you a member of any political organisation?

BONGANI NONDULA: I can say that I was a member of East London Students Cultural Association.  I was very active in that organisation together with Mzukisi Skweyiya.  We would come to meet in the Prespretarian Church.

ADV SANDI: Who is Mr Skweyiya?

BONGANI NONDULA: It is the late Mzukisi Skweyiya, the one who died in Lesotho due to a car accident.

ADV SANDI: Before we go back to the police station, the organisation you mentioned what was the situation between this organisation and the police?

BONGANI NONDULA: As there was a conflict in 1976, students were fighting against the use of Afrikaans and that led to conflict all over South Africa and students were shot in Soweto, 16th of June.  Everything involving students and organisations, the police were suspicious.  Even if we were together we would not be happy, because the private cars of the police would surround us.

ADV SANDI: They were always following you?

BONGANI NONDULA: Yes.

ADV SANDI: Let us now go back to the police station in NU1.
When you were talking about NU1.  We would like you to tell us about what happened to you, the torture, the assaults, the insults.  Everything that happened to you whilst you were in NU1.

BONGANI NONDULA: After a while one police, Fikile Zibi, came in.  He called, he said I am a dog and he slapped me in the face.  They expected me to cry and they would take advantage if I can cry.  I did not cry.  They took me to another car.

ADV SANDI: Was it Fikile Zibi alone?

BONGANI NONDULA: He was the one who came to take me out of the van to one private car.  He slapped me in the face and he dragged me to this car.  In this care there were investigators, Black men.  They put me in the back seat.  Next to me was a person who was also detained.  There was another police.  I use to see him around.  I think he is working for the CID.  On the front seat were White men.  The one behind the wheel was Mr van Wyk.  Van Wyk was looking at me through the mirror.  They said that today is the first of October, we will show you.  You are going to tell us the people you were with in Mr Botamanie's church on Wednesday where you were taking a decision that today you are going to burn White people.
 I said that I did not know anything about this.  I told them not to accuse me of something I do not know.  Van Wyk laughed at me.  I could see him from the mirror.  We then went to Cambridge.

ADV SANDI: Excuse me Mr Nondula, do you have full names of Mr van Wyk, because we had a problem to find out exactly who is this Mr van Wyk or can you give us this name after you have testified?

BONGANI NONDULA: We only knew him as van Wyk.  Just like Schoeman.  We knew that he was Captain Schoeman.  When I read in the newspaper I heard that he was Captain P S Schoeman who was working with my case.  What I am trying to say is that I do not know him, I do not know his full names, but I can identify him.

ADV SANDI: Let us go back to the assault in the police station in NU1.

BONGANI NONDULA: They did not assault me in NU1 Police Station except for Zibi who took me out of the van and he slapped me.

ADV SANDI: Were you released on that same day?

BONGANI NONDULA: No, they took me out of the van to the private car to Cambridge Police Station in East London, because we were in Mdantsane NU1 they were collecting everybody by their cars and while we were all there they took us to Cambridge.

ADV SANDI: What happened in Cambridge Police Station when you got there?

BONGANI NONDULA: When we got to Cambridge Police Station they took me to a separate office, I was alone.  Not after a long time, one police, late Qambata, came in.  He was the one who started assaulting me.  He then tried to strangle me while I was lying down.  I tried to stop him.  He said that I was fighting back and he stopped.  One White man came in saying that I am a terrorist and this White man also tortured me. He kicked me in my ribs and I fell down.  I was then kicked and assaulted.  After a while there was one man, Captain Schoeman, he was sitting on the other side of the table just like you.  I was on the other side.  The police were surrounding me.
 This White man was asking me questions.  The others would beat me and slap me and kick me and this White man at this time was questioning me asking why did you kill the police.  I said that I never killed any police.  He said that after Biko's funeral you came with busses to Highway and you killed two Black policemen.  I said, no, I was not there.  They beat me, they assaulted me, they wanted me to tell them truth.  I said I am telling you the truth, I do not know anything about that.

ADV SANDI: Nr Nondula, did you go to court on this particular day?

BONGANI NONDULA: No, I was not taken to court.  They kept me in Cambridge Police Station on that day.  On the following day, in the afternoon, they took me to Lloyd Police Station.  All this time I was in solitary confinement.  They took me to Lloyd Police Station.  I stayed on Sunday.  The following day, on Monday, I was taken to Fleet Street Police Station.  In Fleet Street Police Station I was detained with someone who was arrested in connection with crime in Duncan Village.

ADV SANDI: Mr Nondula, I would like you to tell us about what was happening to you, because you have a long story.  We have a problem with time.

BONGANI NONDULA: Alright.

ADV SANDI: In Fleet Street were you assaulted?

BONGANI NONDULA: In Fleet Street White man came late at night.  They were going to lock these cells, they were checking us before locking the cells.  The man next to me said that the White men are coming.  I was sleeping at the time.  This man got up and I was sleeping.  This White man said that stand up Kaffir.

ADV SANDI: When were you released Mr Nondula?

BONGANI NONDULA: I stayed there for two days in Fleet Street and transferred to Fort Klamogen.  We were put in single cells there.  I was released on the 19th of October.