Human Rights Violation Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — UNKNOWN

WITNESS:   What I can say is that I had a very bright future for my children, and I decided to build a home for my children so that I could be able to further their education.  But the way that this happened I was not able to use that house to keep my children and help them further their studies.  The whole situation traumatised me unbelievably.  Even today my wife is suffering.  She has got so many diseases that attacked here.  She's got sugar diabetes as well as high blood pressure, which she didn't have before.  And whenever we speak about the Seven Day War she always avoids the topic.  I think it torments her mentally.  Maybe she was even more traumatised than I was.  We are not free even where we stay.

MR SINGH:  Is there any help that you are getting medically or psychologically?  Maybe have you seen psychologists or psychiatrists who can possibly help you?

WITNESS:   We are not getting any psychological or psychiatric help.

MR SINGH:  Do you need this type of help?

WITNESS:   I think we do.

MR SINGH:  You must get in touch with our support staff, who are going to take your further details, because we've made specific arrangements with the Minister of Health that people like you should get some psychological as well as psychiatric help in certain hospitals, where they do not have to pay.  You must get in touch with our support staff so that they can take your details.  How many children do you have?  Are they still at school?

WITNESS:   Yes, I do have schoolgoing children.  The last one is 10 years old and she is still at school.  She is doing standard four.  And the boy is attending school at Eastwood.  He is 12 years old.  And I have another daughter that is attending school at Xaluza.  There is another daughter who is attending school at Zibongodunga.  My son is at Msinga.  I had six children all in all, but I am left with five now.

MR SINGH:  Can you tell us about your family, that is your children - how traumatised were they?

WITNESS:   As I am talking not even a single member of the family was not traumatised.  They don't have a home, we are destitute, but we are scared to go back to the area because we don't know how safe going back would be.

MR SINGH: I think your children need to get some psychological as well as psychiatric help.  You must give your full details to the support staff.

MR SINGH:  Mr Zondi, I have got one question with regard to your statement.  You have made mention of the fact that many people who died were children, as well as women.  So that we can get a full picture of the war that took place, do you think that many people who died were children as well as women?

WITNESS:   That is quite true.

MR SINGH:  Is it according to your opinion?  Why was it that many children as well as women were killed, because usually men die in a war situation?

WITNESS:   Firstly what I would like to say is that elderly people especially men, were at work, and some ended up staying in the centre of town because they realised that the situation was becoming tense at the rural areas.  So many people moved and stayed at the centre of town as well as at their workplaces, and when this outbreak of violence took place there were children as well as women at home.  That's the reason why I am saying that a lot of people who died were children, as well as women.  Even on the following day when the attack took place women and children were at home.  Even though I haven't mentioned this in my statement they came on a Thursday, that is on the 29th.  They got there and they killed a woman who had just given birth.  They also killed the newborn baby.  Even the elderly people who could not run away were killed.  It was quite a terrible situation.  It was something like something from a horror movie.

MR SINGH:  Mr Zondi, you mentioned three families.  You mentioned the Khoza and the Ndlela families who were your neighbours, and a third one which I didn't get the name of.

WITNESS:   Could you please repeat your question.

MR SINGH:  In your evidence to us you mentioned the Khoza and Ndlela families, and then you mentioned a third family whose name I didn't catch.  Can you repeat the third name, and then can you just briefly tell us what's happened to those three families?  They were obviously your neighbours.

WITNESS:   At the time when these attackers were coming from KwaShange and towards our area a certain group went further down next to Msinga School, and there were certain houses.  There was a Ndlela house there.  They burnt Mr Ndlela's house, and I heard later on that they had killed Mr Madlala's wife.  They went further up towards the road.  That is Mr Khoza's house.  That is where I witnessed them burning the house down.  Then just opposite me they stabbed the stock that was there.  The people had run away and left the stock, and they went around stabbing the stock and they killed all the goats.

MR SINGH:  Mr Zondi,you've made mention of the fact that the fact that you are not staying at your place traumatises you, as well as your family.  Is there anything that's being done by the community in order to bring back the situation to normal?

WITNESS:   I do not know.  I haven't seen any efforts that have been done, or any mechanism that has been put forth, because people are still staying in shacks and they are still staying at neighbouring areas.

MR SINGH:  Maybe as a former resident, or a person who's got information as to what the area looked like, would you have any opinion or suggestion as to what can be done in order to bring the community back?

WITNESS:   I think what can be done is that people should preach peace.  The Government should also assist the community in trying to create some peace so that the people or the former residents don't feel threatened.  Even the help to rebuild their houses would be appreciated, because the residents have lost quite a great deal and it's difficult ... (incomplete - end of Side A, Tape 4) ... a lot of children are being maintained by their grannies.  Because the grannies are getting meagre pensions they cannot maintain the households.  I believe that the Government should devise a mechanism whereby they can support the community in order for it to rebuild itself, to get some security that they will be safe when they go back to their respective areas.

MR SINGH:  Just one question, Mr Zondi.  You said that you saw large white ZG lorries carrying groups of armed men.  That was in KwaShange and KwaMnyandu, is that right?

WITNESS:   That is correct.

MR SINGH:  Now, do you recall what lorries those were?  Had you seen those sorts of lorries before?  Do you know what department they were from?  You said that they were white lorries.  Did they have a ZG numberplate?  Can you tell us anything more about them?

WITNESS:   I was not in the street at the time that the lorries went past so that I could see their numbers, but I could see that they were ZG registrations.  They were Toyota trucks, and everybody knew - it was common knowledge that they were ZG trucks.  They used to go past our streets every day.

MR SINGH:  Do you know which department they would have belonged to in the KwaZulu Government?  Were they Health Department, were they police, were they - what were they from, which department were they from?

WITNESS:   I would not be certain of that because I was not quite close to them.  I could have seen if they were written Justice, Department of Justice, Department of Works or Department of Welfare, but I could not closer to see as to from which department these lorries were coming from.

MR SINGH:  But you're satisfied that they were ZG lorries?

WITNESS:   I am fairly satisfied.