Human Rights Violation Hearings — Mabopane — 1997-05-08

CHAIRPERSON: (indistinct), you have brought somebody with you. Who is with you?

BETTY SKHOSANA: He is (indistinct), he is my cousin.

CHAIRPERSON: Welcome to you Mr Nabise, thank you for coming. Before Ms Joyce Seroke helps you to tell your story, I will call upon Dr Russel Ally to help you with taking the oath. If you would just stand and raise your hand please.

BETTY SKHOSANA: (sworn states)

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you very much, and now over to Mrs Joyce Seroke.

MS SEROKE: Hello Betty. I welcome you with your cousin. You are now going to tell us what happened on 11 March 1992 at Temba, when you were assaulted by the police. Can you tell us what was happening at that time?

BETTY SKHOSANA: On 11 March at about 9 o'clock in the evening, I was at my friends called Madira. I left them and I was tired and decided to go and sleep. Whilst still lying on the bed I saw the police coming into the house, and they searched the house.
 After searching the whole house, the police left. At about something to eleven, I was asleep by then, and they came back. When I woke up I was awoken by sjamboks all over me and the beatings. When I opened my eyes there was a policeman called Vincent Drabalula, who was hitting me.
 When I was trying to find out what he beating me for, he said I was intending to kill him. He kept on hitting me and you know what was worse is that I had no clothes on me, because I was asleep. He pulled me from the bed and I fell down, and that's when he started kicking me and the others were just looking at him.
 He pulled me into the dining room, still hitting me. He kept on hitting me for a long time. They then took me along with them to Block 14, that is where Shadrach Stray stays. And then I said to them "I can't climb on the hippo, it is very high." And they said I should climb on my own, they wouldn't help me. My leg was injured by then, and I didn't know how I got injured.
 I tried by all means to get on that hippo. When I got in, they didn't allow me to sit down. They said I must kneel and I couldn't do that. I had to do what they ordered me to say. When we got to our destination, that is where Shadrach stays, they said I must knock on the door. I did that. Shadrach opened the door and after opening, they searched his house.
 After searching, I don't know what they said to him, and they then put him in the hippo and drove away. We went to Block 12, when we got there, they got out of the hippo with Shadrach and they left me inside. 
 I didn't know what they did in that house where we were, and then they came back with Shadrach and then we dropped him at his place. They drove with me until (indistinct) and they stayed with me until 5:00am. They were drinking beer by then.
 One of them called Homsa gave me a gun and said I must hold it on me and when (indistinct) comes across I must shoot him. I asked him "Show me how they shoot" and then one of them said "It is not according to the rules that you should give this lady a gun" and then he took the gun from me.
 When I was with them they kept insulting me until in the morning, and then they left me and said they don't want to see me on the roads. And then I went to my friend and told her that I was going to the hospital. I then went home and took a hospital file. After taking the file at home, I went across to Block 14 where Moses stayed. 
 When I got there, there were bullet holes on the house, the windows were broken, there was (indistinct) of teargas canisters. And then I greeted Moses. After greeting him, I told him that the police had beaten me up. He told me that the police had also visited him and they shot at the house yesterday in the afternoon.
 I was told that the other guy had escaped and I was given money to go to the hospital. When I got to the hospital, the doctors worked on my teeth because they were also injured and my right leg was also injured. They gave me some treatment and ordered me to go home. I used to visit the hospital for check ups and I also told Moses I'm afraid to stay at home because my mother works and there is a possibility that the police will come back and fetch me when I'm alone at home. I'd rather stay with him.
 I thought they would, because they were grown ups, they could speak to the police when they came for me, and I stayed there with them and the police used to come around  and throw some teargas at us. I was then transferred to Garankuwa Hospital, and while still attending treatment there, I was supposed to go in for an operation.
 I was operated, and stayed for 3 months at Garankuwa Hospital, thereafter they discharged me. After being discharged, I wanted to open a case, and I wasn't allowed to do that by the Bop police. I didn't know what to do thereafter because I was on crutches and most of the time I was tired. Even after sitting in a car for a while, I would be very tired, and then I left everything.
 At the present moment I can't use my right leg, I can't even kneel on it. I can't stand for a longer period. All I can do with this leg is rest it.

MS SEROKE: Betty, when the police found you sleeping for the first time, what did they say they wanted from you, what were they searching for, because as you said, they were searching.
(The speaker's microphone is not on)

BETTY SKHOSANA: I was not at home, I was at my friends. Sometimes I used to sleep over at my friends. It seems as if those people weren't home and they didn't find me.
  When they found me at my friend's, I was sleeping, I was in the bedroom. They just told me to get out of bed so that they could search. I did that and they searched. They didn't say anything to me and they went away. When they came back for the second time, Vincent came and started assaulting me.

MS SEROKE: When the police arrived and searched, didn't they say they were searching for guns or anything, or dagga? Didn't they tell you what they were searching for?

BETTY SKHOSANA: No, they didn't tell me anything.

MS SEROKE: Now for the second time when they came back, were you at home?

BETTY SKHOSANA: No, I was still at my friends. I wasn't at home.

MS SEROKE: Why did they beat you?

BETTY SKHOSANA: Vincent, I was asleep by then. I just felt someone hitting me. When I woke up, I saw many police in the room. I asked the one who was hitting me, why he was hitting me. He said I was intending to kill him. When I asked him why is he saying that, he didn't explain to me.

MS SEROKE: In your statement you said, they were looking for your boyfriend, when they hit you.

BETTY SKHOSANA: No, I didn't know that by then. I only came to know the following day.

MS SEROKE: When they were looking for Moses, what did Moses do?  To which political organisation did he belong?

BETTY SKHOSANA: I used to hear him say he was going to a meeting of APLA. I didn't know whether he belonged to APLA or what.

MS SEROKE: Did they, when did they find Moses?

BETTY SKHOSANA: On the eleventh day, he was, they were shooting against him and then he went away and returned on the 28th of March.
 When they found they found him on the 28th of March, they arrested him in Attridgeville and then brought him to the Bophutatswana police where they dropped him off at central police station and the Bophutatswana police went to fetch him at Bop central prison.
 I didn't understand how come he got out of the van, because he was hand-cuffed. he then to his friends at Bosplaas and that is where they killed him.

MS SEROKE: Did they find him at Bosplaas?

BETTY SKHOSANA: Yes.

MS SEROKE: Are you Moses' girlfriend?

BETTY SKHOSANA: Yes.

MS SEROKE: Didn't he tell you anything about his activities within APLA or tell you what for the police was looking for him.

BETTY SKHOSANA: He used to complain that the Bop police were assaulting people and that is true, so he didn't allow them to arrest him.

MS SEROKE: So there were no guns in his house that the police were looking for?