Amnesty Hearings — Richards Bay — 1998-04-14

BRIAN QUNA MKHIZE: As I already explained that we tried to weaken up the strength and support of the ANC, so that the community could realise that they were supporting a weak and failing organisation.
	The Ntokozweni attack therefore was along the same strategy and belief that Mr Mtimkhulu should be attacked and the car took us to some veld near the eSikhawini College of Education.  We went into this veld with an aim of attacking eMalahleni.
	I have indicated to the Commission that eMalahleni was a place well known, that even the cat there is ANC.  We knew fully well that workers whom we would encounter at the bus stop, were obviously ANC and on arrival these workers were singing there.  They were singing liberation songs.
	The ANC was very strong in that section, it was a section that had become worrisome to us, we wanted to disrupt that and disrupt their singing so that they could end up not trusting one another.
	We walked into the bush from the training side, that is the College of Education side.  People were waiting at the bus stop on their way to work, and we advanced towards their direction and we took up our positions, and we lay flat at a place, the very same place that is bushy and we started shooting towards their direction.
	We did not want to shoot a specific person, but we were just shooting following the strategy about which I spoke earlier on.
	On shooting, they scattered and others retreated and there were some small markets, vegetable and fruit markets in the area and some people took cover behind the market and they shot back.
	We realised that some of these people were armed and I started using the military tactic and I indicated that we should not be defeated here, because if they defeated us here, they will start attacking our places.
	On shooting, they continued shooting back and they were able to do so because they were shooting us from cover and we were just hiding in the bush.  We realised that this is dangerous, we should retreat and that is what we did.
	We retreated, I was also trying to avoid losing one of my members.  We realised that they were using pistols, we could determine that from the kind of sounds.   We were not in a position to shoot from where we were hiding, because it was not safe at all and they were better placed, because they would only shoot when it was safe to do so.
	We retreated until we fled back and each one of us took a different direction and we ultimately came across Romeo.  We could not even see Victor, the car was not there, we could not even see Joyful and everybody just disappeared.
	It was now difficult for me to go back to see this people, because now that we have retreated, this people must be approaching.  Romeo suggested that we go to the Mayor's house.  We walked to the Mayor's house.   We came across cars and we had to keep hiding the rifles that we were carrying.  Some cars were just driving past and we ultimately arrived at the Mayor's house and asked where the people were.
	The Mayor asked me the same question, and we told him narrating to him that things did not go as planned and he got a fright.  Our main worry was that they may have been shot and most probably left laying in the bush.  It was a concern that if their corpses were found in the bush, this would create a problem.
	The Mayor and I decided to get into the car to go and look for them, but at the same time before we got into the car, they arrived and that became better.  We concluded that already there were suspicions among the community that the Mayor's car is usually seen ferrying us in particular around, and it was therefore no longer safe to drive around at night, because there was a lot of shooting taking place.
	We tried to observe the situation for a while, and the Police also waited and we hoped that this would be reported, but nothing was reported at the Police station.
	It transpired that the ANC members had undertaken not to report anything at the Police station, because such cases are not investigated and no one is arrested, instead Inkatha are found in a better position, and they could not report the matter at Empangeni because Empangeni would refer them back to eSikhawini.
	I don't know whether some people were hurt or killed during the shooting incident, but I still remember very well that there was a rumour to the effect that there is one who was badly hit in the head.  I don't know who he was and how much he was injured.
	Therefore we were not prosecuted and sentenced for the incident, but it happened exactly as I am explaining it.

MR WILLS: Was this incident and the incident of the attack of Mr Mtimkhulu investigated by the KwaZulu Police at eSikhawini?

BRIAN QUNA MKHIZE: These incidents were investigated by the people like Romeo who were in the CID Branch, they were investigating such matters.

MR WILLS: When you say they were investigated by people like Romeo, can you expand on that?

BRIAN QUNA MKHIZE: What I mean is that the jurisdiction in the eSikhawini area, that needed investigation, was investigated by eSikhawini Detectives.  Romeo is one of the people who were deployed in the Detective Section, so that he could further the undercover operations that I am talking about.  That is why I say these were investigated by people like Romeo.

MR WILLS: I just want you to exclude from your mind, Romeo's specific position within the hit squad at the moment, and you in your experience as a Policeman emanating from eSikhawini Police station, what would you opinion be as regards the impartiality of the investigations of the KwaZulu Police into attacks on UDF members?

BRIAN QUNA MKHIZE: As I have explained Chairperson, this was a war situation.  Everybody was fighting for his organisation.  We had to explore all possible and available avenues, we used any strategy.  We used investigations, fighting, any other strategy, even trying to arrest our opponents.  We used anything that would make our organisation stronger and those were the instructions that we had received to wipe out the ANC.
	Therefore investigations that we used, there are about two or three ANC dockets that were investigated successfully with regards to ANC members or attacks against ANC members.
	But we tried by all means that investigations involving ANC members, that is those that we attacked, we tried by all means that they shouldn't be successful.
	There were however, instances where investigations couldn't be wiped out or where we couldn't cover the clues.  We tried everything, even changing statements in the dockets, or even stealing the entire docket.
	There are dockets that Romeo will bring to Mrs Mbuyasi which will be destroyed in our presence.

MR WILLS: Yes, I see at the bottom of page, sorry the last sentence in paragraph 51 of your affidavit, on page 100 of the record, that some time later you reported these incidents to Major Langeni in Ulundi, is that correct?

BRIAN QUNA MKHIZE: Yes, that is correct.

MR WILLS: Mr Mkhize, I want you to go on to the next incident now, and that is the incident concerning the murder of Teliwe Makwanasi.  If you can relate the circumstances surrounding that incident to those present.