Human Rights Violation Hearings — Upington — 1996-10-03

WITNESS:  They just stopped us in the street and we asked them what they were looking for and they didn't give us any answer.  They just said they didn't want any ANC supporters in their location and we said we don't know anything, we're just coming home from work, we don't know what's happening in the location but they just decided they were going to hurt us.

MR POTGIETER:  You sustained certain injuries, you went to the doctor, were you treated for your injuries?

WITNESS:  Yes and up to today I still have to get medical treatment because I have problems with my legs.

MR POTGIETER:  So your leg was injured.  Did you have any other injuries?

WITNESS:  My arms as well, my arms were swollen.

MR POTGIETER:  How many people were in the group that attacked you?

WITNESS:  There were about 20 people, quite a few people.

MR POTGIETER:  At the stage that you were attacked, was there already this conflict between the ANC and the NP in Prieska?

WITNESS:  Well I don't know because I worked so if there had been conflict in the location I wouldn't have been aware of it.  All I know is that on that particular day when they assaulted us they just said they didn't want any ANC supporters there.  Then I realised there was conflict.

MR POTGIETER:  You said that after you were attacked a group of ANC youth supporters wanted to go and attack and hurt a National Party supporter hiding in a house there.

WITNESS:  Yes it was on the same day.  They hurt many of our people.  Some of our people landed up in Kimberley hospital and other places.

MR POTGIETER:  So what actually happened is that after you were attacked, the ANC youth were angry and they wanted to retaliate against the National Party supporters.

WITNESS:  Yes.

MR POTGIETER:  Was there a lot of fighting after this?

WITNESS:  Yes there was constant fighting.

MR POTGIETER:  Up until the time the election.

WITNESS:  Yes the fighting continued.

MR POTGIETER:  When did matters improve?

WITNESS:  It only improved after the elections, then things quietened down a bit.

MR POTGIETER:  And how are things now?

WITNESS:  Well things are not too bad, things are okay.

MR POTGIETER:  Who won the election?

WITNESS:  National Party won the election there because they were in the majority.  Even Wessels when the National Party wanted to fight us he said to us that we should just leave it because these people were a majority in Ethembeni and if they wanted to, they could really hurt us.  The ANC youth maintained that they weren't just fighting with anybody in Rooi Blok, they were just targeting those people who were hurting other people.

MR POTGIETER:  But you are saying that the fighting is a thing of the past now?

WITNESS:  Yes.

MR POTGIETER:  You refer to two people - PV Simon and Arthur, who are they?

WITNESS:  PW Simon, he was the leader of the National Party and he is Parliament.

MR POTGIETER:  Was he in Parliament, was he a minister?

WITNESS:  Yes.

MR POTGIETER:  Minister of Education?

WITNESS:  Yes.

MR POTGIETER:  And the other person, Arthur, what is his surname?

WITNESS:  Arthur Robson.  He was also a leader in Prieska, a leader of the National Party.

MR POTGIETER:  What role did they play?

WITNESS:  As I understood it and what we learned from our parents was that there was a lot of bribery going on.

MR POTGIETER:  Who was bribed?

WITNESS:  The National Party youth people.

MR POTGIETER:  And you said that the police were involved in this conflict as well and as you explained it, the police brought in National Party supporters into Ethembeni.

WITNESS:  Yes the Ethembeni youth had to stay awake all night.  Children couldn't go to school because they had to stay awake all night because the people would just come into Ethembeni and start hurting people and the police brought these people in.

MR POTGIETER:  So where do you think the police stood in this conflict?

WITNESS:  I think the police were on the side of the National Party because they were actually bringing the people into the location during the night.

MR POTGIETER:  Now the case which you made, you said that the prosecutor told you not to identify and name the other people involved in the attack.

WITNESS:  Yes.

MR POTGIETER:  Why do you think he did that?

WITNESS:  Now I wouldn't know.  When we arrived at the prosecutor's office we saw that he was also talking to the National Party people in his office and then he called us and then he told us what to say.  He told us not, or to say that we didn't know those people but I don't know why.

MR POTGIETER:  In other words the prosecutor told you not to implicate those other people in the case as well.  You should only identify and name Johannes Botha and Glen Jansen, is that right?

WITNESS:  Yes.

MR POTGIETER:  What was the outcome of that case?

WITNESS:  Nothing came of it.  On that very same day they were back in the location.

MR POTGIETER:  So nothing happened as a result of this case.  Did you ever testify in court?

WITNESS:  Yes I testified and when I had given my evidence the prosecutor said we should go home.

MR POTGIETER:  So you don't know whether the people were convicted or punished or whether they were acquitted.  You just saw them in the location again.

WITNESS:  Yes.

MR POTGIETER: Thank you Mr Yanta.  I am going to hand over to the Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: As I told the previous witnesses we thank you for your contribution, for the contribution which you and other young people like yourself made.  It's contributions like these which helped us to establish a new dispensation in the country and perhaps you people in Prieska are now living a little bit more comfortably.  There is not so much conflict anymore but one is concerned about the fact that the prosecutor seemed to try to influence the outcome of the case and took sides in the case.  Thank you very much and I hope other young people will learn from your example that we must all stand together and to co-operate to make this country a better place.  Thank you very much.

WITNESS:  Thank you.