Human Rights Violation Hearings — Bisho — 1996-09-10

WITNESS:  On the morning of the 8th September, some elderly men from the location came and said that they had heard that Thembinkosi had passed away at Bisho and my mother didn't want to believe that and she said I should hurry and go and look for him.

REV XUNDU:  And when you got there you found that it wasn't [indistinct]

WITNESS:  I came to King William's Town and when I got here the police said that he had been sent to East London and I went to East London.  When I got to East London I was told that we should wait a while, that they would be shown to us.  I waited because he was waiting for a specialist to come who was going to conduct a post -mortem.  I waited there and after a while, there were other people present as well, I was called in after quite a while and someone working at the mortuary was called and was told to go and take him down and cover him and just show me his face so that I shouldn't see exactly where he had been injured.  I saw him and then signed the papers there.

REV XUNDU:  Thank you.  You then took him and he was taken home and buried at home.

WITNESS:  Yes he was then taken and buried at home.

REV XUNDU:  Your mother was at home all the time, is that correct?

WITNESS:  Yes my mother was at home.

REV XUNDU:  And she was also in pain?

WITNESS:  My mother couldn't do anything, she was in so much pain and I had to be the one that had to assist her.

REV XUNDU:  Was there any change in your mother's health thereafter?

WITNESS:  My mother was fine before all this happened but thereafter she became a nervous wreck, she suffered from high blood pressure and sugar diabetes and there are times when while sitting, she would ask to please help her get up because she was  ... end of Tape 1, side A ... I used to take her to the clinic before but then I saw that these tablets that she was receiving there didn't seem to make any difference to her, so I went to a nursing sister there in the community and, or my sister, in the community and she would give me money so that I could take her to a private doctor in Fort Beaufort.

REV XUNDU:  Who paid the funeral costs?

WITNESS:  The funeral costs and arrangements were made by the ANC.

REV XUNDU:  Did you people receive any kind of compensation from the government for the death of your brother, of Thembinkosi?

WITNESS:  No we did not receive any compensation besides R600 which was brought to us by the Red Cross.

REV XUNDU:  If you were to ask this Commission for anything, what would you ask this Commission to help you with?

WITNESS:  My wish from this Commission is that I would like the Commission to help his two sisters.  The one cannot do anything for herself, she is confined to a wheelchair and the other one is with my sister in Cape Town, she is still at school.  I would also like to ask the Commission to help by giving us a tombstone for him.

REV XUNDU:  Did Thembinkosi have any children?

WITNESS:  The child was six years old.

REV XUNDU:  What is the child doing?

WITNESS:  The child had just started school.

REV XUNDU:  Is it also your wish for this child to be assisted?

WITNESS:  Yes that is also my wish.

REV XUNDU:  Is there anything else you would like to say?

WITNESS:  I would like to ask this Commission to please investigate this event for us because we were once called to the attorneys' offices and when we got there we were told that the matter was being handled by the ANC attorneys and we have been waiting ever since and we have never heard anything.

REV XUNDU: Thank you very much Busisiwe.  Mr Chairperson I'd like to hand back to you.

<UNKNOWN>: The names of the attorneys, do you know?

WITNESS:  I don't know what the attorneys' names are, all I know is that we were told that the ANC was handling the matter.

<UNKNOWN>:  Had you never seen them?

WITNESS:  No I never saw them for myself.

<UNKNOWN>: Thank you very much.  Thank you Chairperson.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you.  Ntsike?

TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION: BISHO MASSACRE - DAY 2 - 10 SEPTEMBER 1996

CASE NO: 3

ADV SANDI: At this time we are going to listen to Mr Zolile Jonas.  Would you please come closer to the microphone.
ZOLILE JONAS   Duly sworn states

ADV SANDI: I'd like to greet you this morning Mr Jonas.

WITNESS:  Good morning sir.

ADV SANDI:  And thank you for your presence.  Mr Jonas, could you just briefly tell us, when looking at your statement, you said that you were also present there but you survived death while others were being shot dead, is that so?

WITNESS:  Yes that is correct.  I escaped death but although I was shot.

ADV SANDI:  Could we just go to where you say that you heard gunshots.  Not knowing where the gunfire was coming from and thereafter you regained consciousness in hospital.  Which hospital did you regain consciousness in?

WITNESS:  The hospital where I came to was Gray hospital.

ADV SANDI:  Could you please tell us what the nature and extent of your injuries were due to this shooting.  Where on your body, which parts of your body were injured?

WITNESS:  The nature of my injuries was that I was shot on my thigh and I found that when I was shot in the thigh the bullet could not be removed.  It was, for a long time I used to go to the doctors wanting the bullet removed at Gray hospital.

ADV SANDI:  And did they give you any reason why they could not remove the bullet?

WITNESS:  The doctor said to me that it was between my bones, it was lodged in my bones and that they couldn't remove it.

ADV SANDI:  Is there any kind of treatment that you are receiving currently for this bullet that is lodged in your body?

WITNESS:  No sir.

ADV SANDI:  Do you suffer pains due to this bullet being lodged in your body?

WITNESS:  Yes I do suffer pains because when the weather is bad I always have pain.

ADV SANDI:  What happens when the weather is bad?

WITNESS:  Since it is in my leg, the pains that I suffer aren't in my leg but they're actually at the base of my stomach.

ADV SANDI:  What work did you say you do?

WITNESS:  I work at the taxis.

ADV SANDI:  Are you saying that you are a taxi-driver?

WITNESS:  Yes, even though I am not working at the moment.

ADV SANDI:  And by coming here today Mr Jonas, what is your request to this Commission?

WITNESS:  I would like to ask the Commission to investigate for me what happened because I never took any steps in connection with my injury.  I just sat there because I was afraid because of the circumstances at the time that we were injured.

ADV SANDI:  Are you saying that you never went to any attorney for legal advice on what steps you could take?

WITNESS:  No I didn't go.

ADV SANDI:  Mr Jonas is that all you would like to say?

WITNESS:  Yes sir, that's all.

ADV SANDI: Thank you very much Mr Jonas.

CHAIRPERSON: Is there anyone that would like to put questions?  Has it been moved already, can we now have the next witness.

TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION: BISHO MASSACRE - DAY 2 - 10 SEPTEMBER 1996

CASE NO: 4

REV XUNDU: Is the next witness Mr Jonnie Sicelo, Mr Sicelo Jonnie?  I'd like to ask you to come closer to the microphone please sir.
SICELO JONNIE   Duly sworn states

REV XUNDU: When looking at your statement Mr Jonnie, I see that you too were there on that day but you escaped death as well. Is that correct?

WITNESS:  Yes that is correct.

REV XUNDU:  Let us just go to the part where the shooting occurred.  What happened to you?

WITNESS:  We heard gunfire and thereafter I ran and while I was running I was shot in my leg but I didn't fall.  I realised that I could still run and while I was still, while I was running away I was shot in the head and then I fell.

REV XUNDU:  Do I understand you correctly when you say that you were shot twice?  The first time you were shot in the leg and you continued running and you said that while you continued running you were shot from behind?

WITNESS:  Yes.

REV XUNDU:  Is that correct?

WITNESS:  Yes.