Human Rights Violation Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — UNKNOWN

DR MAGWAZA: Was there any psychological trauma that he went through?

WITNESS:   I didn't notice anything, but at times he just didn't eat or he just wouldn't eat.  And one other thing that disturbs him is us having to move up and down, not having a place to stay.  At times we stay - all of us who are sitting in front of this Commission will stay together, and we once stayed at a four-roomed house.  I had to go out and get a place to stay.

DR MAGWAZA: How do you earn your living?

WITNESS:   My son is working.  He is the only one who is working.

DR MAGWAZA: Now, Zodwa Ntombela, when I come back to you.  You mentioned that your mother was shot on the head but she survived.  According to your opinion is there anything that happened that affected her?

WITNESS:   I could say by a stroke of luck she just got injured on the head, but at times she is very, very disturbed, she is very emotional.   But she is working.   ---    Yes, she's a little bit confused at times.  When you look at her you do realise that somehow emotionally she has been affected adversely.  Maybe it's because she got injured on the head.  At times she just talks anyhow and say anything.

DR MAGWAZA: Is there any help that she's getting?

WITNESS:   No, she has never got any medical attention. Thank you very much, because this helps us as this Commission so as to see how we can assist the family, even though we don't have the authority or the power to offer any help, but we do take into consideration and we take the recommendations to the President so that he may decide to do with each particular case.  Thank you.

MR LAX: One aspect that I wanted to clarify for the record's sake.  When I was reading through these inquest documents relating to the deaths of Mr Dlungwane and Mr Ntombela I noticed that there were statements from a group called the Imbali Support Group.  Will you tell us a little bit about the Imbali Support Group, just so that it can go down in the record of the Commission?

WITNESS:   At the height of violence in Imbali, when the police didn't help us, we decided to form a support group who were going to stay in our homes and protect us at the time of violence.  So at home there was a Monica Rautenberg, but I have forgotten the others.  The other one who can help was our attorney, John Jeffries, who actually helped us out from this predicament.  Because at that time we had actually discussed this with him that we should form a support group, because people were not getting arrested, they were just away with murder, killing people, but nothing happening.

MR LAX: These were people from the rest of 'Maritzburg, some white people and other people, who were prepared to come and spend time with you in your homes and witness what was happening to you, is that correct?

WITNESS:   Yes, that is so.

MR LAX: We thank you very much.  All those things that I have said about other women I still say them to you and about you, that this nation - it's becoming clearer by the day that our freedom was solely or fully dependent upon the women of this country, and we wouldn't have been here had you not gone through the hardships that you have.  You have endured so much, and we would like to tell you that you have got courage and strength.  We sympathise with you, and it's very painful to listen to these stories that you relate, but all these things strengthen us.  They give us the courage, because we do realise that if women could be this strong how could we fail them, how could we be weak?  You have gone through so much.  Probably we wouldn't be here if you hadn't done what you did.  Now I have a firm belief that this Commission ought to have a special hearing specifically designed to hear about the trauma that the women went through during the period of fighting for freedom.  You could go Soweto.  You could hear the hardships that the women went through.  You can go to Queenstown.  You will realise that women are at the forefront of the struggle.  We thank you very much.

MR LAX: We welcome you.  We would like ... (inaudible) ... when you give your testimony that Dr Magwaza should lead you.  Before that ... (inaudible) ... it's okay for you even if you are sitting down.  Your name is Hansford Thabo Shangase, and you are here because you want to give testimony and to talk about what happened to you.  You don't have to stand up, you will just raise your hand.

HANSFORD THABO SHANGASE: (Sworn, States)
I would like you to speak a little bit up so that other people can hear you as well.  Dr Magwaza, you can lead him now.

DR MAGWAZA: We welcome you.  Even though you are still young but we can all respect you and we would like to thank your courage that you are here to tell us and the whole world how you were tortured.  Before we could start we would like you to tell us more about yourself and about your family, because we like to hear everything about your family before we can go forward in asking questions.

WITNESS:  I am staying with my mother at home.

DR MAGWAZA: Would you please speak a little bit louder.

WITNESS:   I am staying with my mother.  It's just the two of us.

DR MAGWAZA: Just the two of you?

WITNESS:   Yes.

DR MAGWAZA: And there are no brothers and sisters or father?

WITNESS:   No, my father died.

DR MAGWAZA: When did your father die?

WITNESS:   Last year.

DR MAGWAZA: And what about brothers and sisters?

WITNESS:   No, I am just the only one.

DR MAGWAZA: You were just the only one?

WITNESS:   Yes.

DR MAGWAZA: We thank you, Thabo.  We would like you to just raise your voice a little bit, because today we really want to hear about what really happened to you, what kind of torture you received, what harassment was done to you from 1986.  We want you to lead us from there until 1987.

WITNESS:   I will say we were at the sports ground in 1986.

DR MAGWAZA: I would like to interrupt you there.  How old were you at that time?

WITNESS:   16 years.

DR MAGWAZA: Okay.

WITNESS:   Guys approached.  Guys that I didn't know came to the sports ground, and they came back and said they were asking for me.  So I went to the outside the stadium ... (inaudible) ... when we were there one of them took out a knife, and then I ran away.  I ran away to the direction that ... (inaudible) ... I was tired, I couldn't run away.  They caught me in one house straight opposite my house.  Then they took me from that house and they went with me to the bushes.  One guy hit me with something very hard.  I don't know what was that.  I was unconscious and they took me to hospital.  In hospital ... (intervention)

DR MAGWAZA: Let's just stop there.  You said these guys came and took you at the sports ground.

WITNESS:   Yes.  The schools were competing, and they came and asked for me.  I went to them and then they said they wanted to speak to me, but they said we must go out.  We went outside the stadium.  When we were outside one of them had a gun and the other one had a knife.  Then they asked me that, "Where are your friends?" and I said, "I don't know my friends and I don't know who you're talking about."  And then one of them said, "Don't make us fools.  You know who we're talking about."   And then I ran.  That's when they started running after me.  I ran to one house and they took me from that house. What I'll ask you is that at that time, Thabo, were you belonging in one of the organisations?   ---   Yes, I was a member of the UDF.

DR MAGWAZA: These guys who tortured you, do you have any idea what organisation they belonged to, or did they belong to any organisation?

WITNESS:   Yes, they were IFP members.

DR MAGWAZA: After they tortured you until you were in hospital how long did you stay in hospital?

WITNESS:   One year.  I was admitted in July 16 and I was discharged in 1987 July.

DR MAGWAZA: At this time when they tortured you is there any case that was there concerning your torture?