Amnesty Hearings — Johannesburg — UNKNOWN

ANSWER: I did and it was not thrown Mr Chairperson, the circumstances apparently was not favourable as we planned.  As I say, I can only give them a broad outline of the operation, but eventually it is left in their hands on the scene according to circumstances awaiting them on the scene to decide whether they could execute the whole instruction or just part of it.

UNKNOWN: So in fact you reported back that the grenade wasn't thrown?

ANSWER: That's correct Mr Chairperson.

UNKNOWN: In your memoirs on page 19 why do you say
"I do not remember whether they said anything about throwing the hand grenade into the house."

ANSWER: I did say so at the time Mr Chairperson, this was in 1989/1990 when I have written this document.  I left the country without any notes, I had to rely on memory only and since then during the Harms Commissions and all the other
1a	inquiries /...
MEMBER OF PANEL	11	D J COETZEE
inquiries, documents were submitted and I of course had the opportunity to speak to Almond and Tshikalanga and I've learned that they did not throw the hand grenade.   I was not sure at the time when I left the country, as I said I had to rely on memory only.

UNKNOWN: Tjekelanga didn't accompany did he?

ANSWER: No but he would have been able to tell me what Nofomela said, I can't remember which one exactly but Almond for sure.   Tjekelanga was with me on the border but did not go on this specific operation with Nofomela.(End of side 1a)
NO RE-EXAMINATION BY MR JANSEN

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you very much.

ANSWER: Mr Chairperson if you would allow me I would just like I believe comrade A is present here this morning to just extend my extreme apology to him and say to him that I'm glad that I can look him in the face this morning and apologise to him and not like some of my other victims, where the operation was successful, to the extent - if you can call it successful - where people was killed and I could not, I cannot face them today and say I'm really sorry.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you.
WITNESS IS EXCUSED

MR JANSEN: Mr Chairman, the second applicant Mr Nofomela will now give his evidence.
1b	MR /...
MR MARAIS	12	MR NOFOMELA

MR NOFOMELA: s s

MR MARAIS: Mr Nofomela, can you hear the translation and is it in the correct language?

MR NOFOMELA: Yes, Chairperson.

MR MARAIS: In 1981 you were employed as a constable in the South African Police Force under the command of Captain Dirk Coetzee at Vlakplaas.

MR NOFOMELA: Yes, Sir.

MR MARAIS: Towards the end of 1981 you were at the Wepener border gate near Lesotho when you were called to Ladybrand, is that correct?

MR NOFOMELA: Yes, Sir.

MR MARAIS: Who briefed you at Ladybrand?

MR NOFOMELA: It was Captain Dirk Coetzee an Warrant Officer Prinsloo.

MR MARAIS: Can you tell the Commission about the instructions that you received?

MR NOFOMELA: What I remember, Sir, is that he said that there was someone in Lesotho.  I cannot remember the name he gave, but he is a member of the ANC and it is someone who should be killed and I was with Jantjies from Ladybrand Special Branch.  He gave me a 9mm weapon, I cannot remember whether it was a 7.65 or what, but it was a 9mm and Jantjies was also given a firearm.  I cannot remember the hand grenade.  I cannot remember, although he mentioned something about a hand grenade.  We were to go to Lesotho and when we got there we were to kill this person, whose name I cannot remember, but when they mentioned Comrade A it sounds familiar.

MR MARAIS: How would you identify this person once you reach Lesotho?
20.1 - 1B

MR NOFOMELA: /...
MR MARAIS	13	MR NOFOMELA

MR NOFOMELA: Chairperson, in a certain way the way Jantjies understood instructions was he knew the person and he knew where the person lived because we had no problem getting there.

MR MARAIS: At what time did you go through the border gate?

MR NOFOMELA: It was in the evening when we went through the border gates.

MR MARAIS: Can you tell the Committee what happened then?

MR NOFOMELA: We were in a blue Valiant, which I had brought from Vlakplaas, myself and David Chikalanga.  We used the Maseru border gates, myself and Jantjies, and we went through the Maseru border gates and we went to this place.  It was dark by then, it was late evening, and we went there carrying these firearms.  We jumped over the fence.  We entered the premises from the backyard and if I remember correctly it was L-shaped and there was a door which we were supposed to knock at and Jantjies was walking in front and I was walking behind him.  When we came near this door he said, "There he is sitting at the table".  There was a big window in front of us and when he finished saying that he started firing immediately.  I was behind him and I couldn't shoot from behind him, I had to get next to him in order to shoot.  When he finished shooting and he turned around I started firing as well in the direction in which he was firing although I didn't see anyone any longer.  And we then ran back to the vehicle and we passed through the border gates again.  It was closing by the time we went through. When we got back we reported back to Captain Dirk Coetzee.  And I cannot remember who he was with when we came back from the border, and that is what happened.

MR MARAIS: Why did you not follow the instructions to knock
20.1 - 1B	at/...
MR MARAIS	14	MR NOFOMELA
at the door and then shoot the person who opened?

MR NOFOMELA: Sir, the way in which this whole thing happened is that we were supposed to get there and go to the door and Jantjies had already spotted him before we got to the door and he started firing.  When I asked him thereafter why we didn't knock he said that it was possible that there were other people besides him inside because when we got there and he was saying, "There he is", there were people sitting next to him at the table.  So when I asked him why we did not knock, I asked him when we had left already, he said no, it was possible that there were other people there who - we could endanger ourselves that way.

MR MARAIS: How many shots did you fire?

MR NOFOMELA: I remember myself firing once.

MR MARAIS: And when did you fire?

MR NOFOMELA: I was firing at the window that Jantjies was shooting at.  He shot several times.  I cannot remember how many times, but he shot about two or three, he fired about two or three bullets.

MR MARAIS: Do you know whether anybody was injured?

MR NOFOMELA: At the time we were shooting, I did not see anyone who was injured or anything, but Jantjies said that he had struck him.  But thereafter he says that we didn't do anything to him.

MR MARAIS: How did you get through the border gates with the firearms in your possession?

MR NOFOMELA: Jantjies was well-known at those border gates at Maseru and going with him through those border gates was a great advantage because the two of us went through and we weren't asked any questions, nobody bothered us and even coming back I was with him and on our way back they were
20.1 - 1B	already/...
MR MARAIS	15	MR NOFOMELA
already closing because it was late at night.  It was closing time at approximately ten o'clock and we came through and when we got there these people said go through quickly.

MR MARAIS: Was this type of operation to go into a foreign country and assassinate a person part of your duties at Vlakplaas?

MR NOFOMELA: Yes.

MR MARAIS: Thank you, Mr Chairman, I have no further questions.
NO FURTHER QUESTIONS BY MR MARAIS

MOKOTEDI MPSHE: No questions at this moment, Mr Chairman.

MR JANSEN: Mr Nofomela, do I understand your evidence correctly that you say at this stage you cannot remember whether you took a hand grenade with you on the mission?

MR NOFOMELA: Yes.

MR JANSEN: On that mission that you were involved in into countries like Botswana, Swaziland and Lesotho, was explosives taken on some of those missions?  Could you say whether it was taken as a general rule or not?