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

MR LYSTER: That period of detention that you had to endure, that three months in detention, did that have the effect of forming or focusing your political views because thereafter you were beaten, assaulted on two further occasions after that, after your release from detention?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: You mean my involvement in political affairs.

MR LYSTER: Increase after you were released from detention?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: Yes, it did.

MR LYSTER: You say at one stage in your statement that you were charged with I presume it is assault, GBH with intent to do grievous bodily harm.  Were you charge, did you face any case in court, were you convicted of anything, were you acquitted, what happened?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: It ended there without any charge.  There was no specific charge.

MR LYSTER: Now in what ways are you still suffering or in any way disadvantaged from the last assault on you.  You've indicated to us that you had teeth knocked out, you had your lip cut and you said you are still suffering pain in your upper body.  Do you know specifically what the cause of that is, have you seen a Doctor?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: I was terribly effected on the eyes and even the Doctor confirm that my eyes were effected.

MR LYSTER: Was that from being assaulted?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: Being kicked even on the face.

MR LYSTER: Did you have any medical records so that we could try and ascertain the extent of your injury to see whether it is an ongoing or a permanent thing?

INTERPRETER: The Speaker's mike is not on.

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: The Elim hospital can confirm that as to how
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I was injured.

MR LYSTER: And are you now back in your job as a teacher?

INTERPRETER: The Speaker's mike was not on.

MR LYSTER: Sorry, could you just repeat that, your microphone was not switched on.

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: Yes, I am back at work.

MR LYSTER: Activities, were you ever suspended from your job as a school teacher during those days?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: No.

MR LYSTER: I'll ask the Chairman if there are any other questions that he or my other colleague would like to ask.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Mr Munyai, it seems  the students were politicised when the Headmen took the lead or whatever.  Who would you think could have politicised the students by that time?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: I am not aware of anything, I can't tell.  I don't know who could have been influencing at the time.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Or could it have been some other forces within the village that could have politicised them - not necessarily an individual.

INTERPRETER: The witness, you will repeat please.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Sorry, my question was if there is no specific person that you know who could have been a political force or that could have influenced the children against the Headmen, do you know of any other activity that could have influenced the students?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: I've said that what I know is that it seems that came about of the independence, is the only thing that led into the students' resistance.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Then you talk about this incident where, that VENDA HEARING TRC/NORTH WEST
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is the second arrest, what do you - it happened with the death or whatever someone, how come that they have to pin that on you or they had to suspect you?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: I do not know why because it was a list which was issued and we were many and we were arrested, then we were detained.

THOMAS MANTHATA: The many, the number you are referring to, was it a number of political - people belonging to one political thinking or they were just individuals separately?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: They were people who were falling under the same organisation, political organisation, PRATCO.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Was  the Teachers Organisation, was it just an organisation or was it a Trade Union of some kind, affiliated to SADTU?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: It was Teachers Organisation covering all teachers from the Northern Transvaal.

THOMAS MANTHATA: It had nothing to do Duarta, the like and that way, that existed before?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: It was not alighting with Duarta, it was a party which formed SADTU later.

THOMAS MANTHATA: You say you are still a teacher right now.

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: Yes, it is true.

THOMAS MANTHATA: And you are still in that organisation, this Trade Union?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: Yes, I am still in the Teachers' Organisation, but which is SADTU by now.

THOMAS MANTHATA: Okay, perhaps let me hold it there, thank you.  Over to you, Chairman.

RUSSELL ALLY: Mr Munyai, just one or two questions.  The first is before August 1989, were you ever visited by the police, did you have any dealings with the police, either security
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police or the Venda Defence Force, before the incident  that you described that happened in August 1989?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: No, there was no such, there were attempts which were made to arrest me which I used to run away from them.  But during August ...

RUSSELL ALLY: See that I understand you correctly, you say before August 1989, before this incident with the students, you say that there were attempts to arrest you, but you managed to get away?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: There was no attempts of the police trying to arrest me.

RUSSELL ALLY: Do you have any idea why the police would have come to you in August of 1989 to arrest you and to accuse you of inciting students?  Was this that others may have informed on you or had you spoken out and said anything?  Why would they have come specifically to your house?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: I do not know, because there was no charge laid against me and I was released without a charge laid against me.

RUSSELL ALLY: Before this arrest, did you indicate in any way that you were perhaps apposed to what was happening in the former Venda land, remember that these events were taking place during the period of the celebration of ten years of independence.  Did you in any way indicate that you were not in favour of this, did you speak out against this in any meetings or anything like that?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: What, in my heart I was not interested in that and I was hating this independence and I used to criticize it.

RUSSELL ALLY: Did you publicly criticize this independence, maybe at your school or with other fellow teachers?  And
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just one final question, I know that my colleague here did ask you about it, but I wasn't sure about your answer.  About your eyesight, we would just like to know whether you're saying that the damage which was done, was it, is it permanent damage or do you still have problems because you don't have the correct spectacles, the correct as you say in your statement eye glasses.  What is the problem is it one of the glass that you have or have you been told that there is actually permanent damage to your eyes?

THILWAIWI MUNYAI: My eyes are damaged to such an extent that I must use spectacles.  Without spectacles I cannot see things which are in a distance.

RUSSELL ALLY: Thank you very much Mr Munyai for coming forward and for sharing your story with us.  Thank you.