Human Rights Violation Hearings — Worcester — 1996-06-24

WENDY ORR: Mr Dyabooi can you hear me through the phones - stay seated for a minute, who is the young woman with you?

MR DYABOOI: My cousin sister.

WENDY ORR: Okay, welcome to you, thank you for coming here to support Mr Dyabooi.  Mr Dyabooi thank  you for being here with us today and thank you for waiting a long time to tell your story - could you stand now to take the oath please.
XOLILE DYABOOI Duly sworn states

WENDY ORR: I will now ask advocate Denzil Potgieter to help to tell your story.

ADV POTGIETER: Mr Dyabooi good afternoon and welcome here.  Your evidence - your story relates to 1987 and it relates to your detention and what happened whilst you were in detention.

MR DYABOOI: Yes.

ADV POTGIETER: Now is it correct that you were in the company of  a group of friends and you were about to leave the country in 1987.

MR DYABOOI: Yes.

ADV POTGIETER: Can you tell us what happened.

MR DYABOOI: During 1987 we were five - we were members of the South African Congress - while the - we see the increase on the struggle we made a decision that we'll leave South Africa.  We were going to exile, we have seen the situation because the State of Emergency was declared.
 The activist were in a witch hunt, the policeman were looking for them - some of them were arrested already.  It was on Wednesday that year, I can't remember the month, we left the Western Cape by car.  And then the following day when we are in the borders of Botswana - we were arrested by the soldiers and  policeman who  were there.  We were taken to Mbato imprisoned - that's where the whole incident started, we were beaten up by the policeman under the Government of Mangope.
 After that we were taken to Zeerust, when we arrived in Zeerust - I was handcuffed with the other comrades, his name was Malungi [indistinct] Shonangwe from Mossel Bay but he was staying here in Worcester.  We were blindfolded then with black clothes - policeman who were there with [indistinct] tries to put out on the path - on the road and yet the cars were there.  
 But fortunately my colleague or comrade try to pull me because the hooters of the car notify us that we are on the road.  The policeman were just behind us, after a while we had to cross the road, we entered into a building where I notified that it has three floors.  We went up the stairs, it was me and my colleague - and my comrade sorry.  We were on the last floor then, we thought as if we were there.  The polisieman pushed us - the handcuffs were pressing against our writs and then we cut -we had to cast our  wrist and we rolled down the stairs.  After a while they take us an take the handcuffs off - that's where they started to beat us.
 In the evening I thought it was time for them to go home, they took us to the police station, we don't the name of that police station because we were still blindfolded.  On our way to this police station, one of the policeman, he was white, he was speaking Tswana fluently - take out his gun and he pointed it at me directly on my head and he asked me to run - he was speaking Afrikaans.  As I was listening to him, they handcuffed us again behind our backs - because they said we were trying to escape.
 When we got into those cells, they separated us, I was on mine and my comrade was on the other cell.  We were taken time and again to these offices, they were beating us up there, my face got swollen, I had scratches - whole of - the whole of my body and then the following week they take us from those cells - we were given to the South African Government.  I can't remember the day that we were taken there - they were -they  put us into a Kombi, we were chains - tying our hands - hands and feet were tied with chains from the first comrade up till the last one.  When we about to approach the Bridgetown near Mafikeng, we  were taken off this Kombi.
 There was one I could identify known as Lucas and McDonald, they were from Worcester.  They called me aside - they asked if - is Xholile Dyabooi, I am Xholile Dyabooi, I said yes that's me.  And then they let me into the van, they drove off.  We arrived here the following day around about three in the afternoon.  We were taken to the Sanlam Buildings here in Worcester, we were photographed there and we were told that you are being detained under the provision of Section 29, it was the law.
 I was taken to the Strand police station, some of my comrades were taken to different police stations.  Days after that we were tortured by the police - severely.   By this time each and every morning they use to take me to one of the rooms in Macassar, or Stellenbosch, I think they were the police rooms.  They use to bind me - bind my feet together with the table, they seated me so that I can't even move an inch.  They took a bag known as [indistinct] it was like the post bags and they use to put it on me, I just couldn't defend myself because I was bind feet and hands.  
 As they were beating me this - this bag drags - thereafter I would be very dizzy, they would take me - when they were about to knock off at four and they would take me back to the cells.  A few days later as I was detained, they would give me food,  but at times I would just throw the food down the drain, or  down the toilet.  We were always suspicious of poisoning.
 Time went by until we served the detention for six months - I think I am mistaken - I was ill whilst I was still in detention and they took me to Hottentots Holland Hospital at Somerset-West.   I was swollen and I had lumps and swollen glands, I was given treatment, but I don't think that was effective enough.
 And the leader of the investigation team was Lucas van Loggerenberg and McDonald and a few others, there were so many of them, but he was the leader.  And he was also the one who was giving orders for my beatings.  After six months Lucas came - he told me that the Section 29 Detention Order has expired and I was suppose to appear in court.  We were going to hear what we were accused of.  A few days later we were taken to court and we were charged and convicted as terrorists.
 We were sentenced and it was said we were sentenced for contempt of court.  As we were detained under Section 29 we were also put into solitary confinement for all these months, I didn't even see anybody, nobody visited me, I was taken to Brandvlei maximum security,  Stander - there was a certain Major who gave orders that I should go and be detained in a donkergat that is where I spent my solitary confinement sentence.
 So I got indemnity in 1990 when President of the country was released.  I thank you.

ADV POTGIETER: [indistinct] it appears that the -the worst and the most sustained period of torture was during your Section 29 detention at the Strand, is that correct?

MR DYABOOI: Yes it is so.

ADV POTGIETER: Now were you being interrogated at that stage when this torture was going on, was the torture to get answers out of you - what was going on?

MR DYABOOI: Yes they were interrogating me - they would take about ten minutes beating me and they would take this plastic bag and cover my face and then I would have difficulty in breathing and then they would keep on interrogating me.

ADV POTGIETER: [indistinct] long you were - you were detained you saw under Section 29 for about six months - for how long did this torture carry on?

MR DYABOOI: I spent four months and I was being tortured during the whole period.

ADV POTGIETER: Was it always the same team of interrogators and torturers that was involved under the leadership of Lucas van Loggerenberg and McDonald from Worcester?

MR DYABOOI: Yes it was the same team.

ADV POTGIETER: [indistinct] is it correct it seems that you - you obviously were detained in solitary confinement, you were on your own.

MR DYABOOI: Yes it is so.

ADV POTGIETER: [indistinct] of 1987 in that solitary confinement under Section 29?

MR DYABOOI: Yes it is so.