Human Rights Violation Hearings — Empangeni — 1996-11-05

KHOZA MGOJO: We wish to welcome you this morning.  Those who have come to give testimony with regard to human rights violations that they went through in the past as well as things that happened to their relatives and families and the community at large.  We admire the courage with which you have handled this matter so that you may appear before this Commission in order to try and straighten up the wrongs that were done in the past.  We thank you very much for the effort.  We wish that the Lord may help you and give you strength and courage to give testimony without fear and without hindrance and without any doubt.  We also thank those who have come before this Commission even those who have accompanied the witnesses and their community to come and witness the changing of history as a new era dawns.  We urge you to encourage the others who were also violated in the past to come and appear before this Commission so that they can also have a chance to relate their stories.  But I want especially to welcome these young South Africans who have come to be here this morning with us.  They will say in future when they tell their children and their friends in the future generation when you'll be reading history - when this thing becomes history to say that, "You know when there were the hearings at Empangeni, we were there.  We listened.  We heard."  We feel that you are already involving yourselves in the process of reconciliation and cleansing of our nation because when you are here you are part of it.  We thank  the one who is with you, who has accompanied to come with you.  May the Lord bless you always so that you can hear this, so that we don't - because after all this country's yours in future, you young people, so that during the times when you're old, these things which have happened will never happen again.  We are one nation, the rainbow nation.  Thank you very much.

MR LYSTER: Thank you, then without further ado I'd like to ask the first witness to come on to the stage today.  It's Mrs Sigokihle Mkwanyana.  Good morning, Mrs Mkwanyana, can you hear me?  Can you understand me through the earphones.

SIGOKIHLE MKWANYANA: Yes, I can hear you.

MR LYSTER: Thank you.  You're welcome here today.  You're the first person who'll be giving evidence this morning.  I know that it must be a little scary for you but we ask you to relax.  You've come from KwaMbonambi and you've come to tell us about the death of your son, Vusi.  Can you please stand before you tell us your story to take the oath?

SIGOKIHLE MKWANYANA: (Sworn states)

MR LYSTER: Dr Magwaza will now help you with your evidence.

PROF MAGWAZA: We greet you, Mrs Mkwanyana.

WITNESS:  I also greet you.

PROF MAGWAZA:  We do thank you for having shown the courage to come before us and we hope that today you're going to relate your story to us and tell us the events that took place that led you to being here today.  I shall ask you just a few questions and you will be given a chance to  relate your story.  Firstly, I wish to know more about your family as well as yourself.  Just give us a brief background about your family.  I'll ask you certain questions so that we may be able to know about your family.  You stay at KwaMbonambi?

WITNESS:   No, I stay at KwaSokhumi.

PROF MAGWAZA:  Is it the same place a KwaMbonambi?

WITNESS:   No, it's two different places.

PROF MAGWAZA:  In your statement it's stated that you stay at KwaMbonambi.

WITNESS:   I think there was a misunderstanding because Mbonambi is just next to us but they're two different areas.

PROF MAGWAZA:  I shall ask you about your family now.  Can you tell us briefly about yourself, your husband as well as your surviving children and your deceased children?

WITNESS:   I have four children.  I think there are five.  I've got three boys and two girls.  They are five in all.

PROF MAGWAZA:  How old are they?

WITNESS:   The other one is doing Standard 9.

PROF MAGWAZA:  Just tell us their ages.

WITNESS:   He's quite grown up but I'm not really sure about their ages.

PROF MAGWAZA:  Now, tell us about the ones who are still alive.

WITNESS:   There are five surviving.  The other one is at school.  He's doing Standard 9.  The other one is Standard 4.  The other boy has stopped going to school.  He's, as I'm showing, he's about 11.

PROF MAGWAZA:  What about the girls?

WITNESS:   I've got two girls.  The other one is no longer attending school.  She's got kids.  The other one is in Standard 5.

PROF MAGWAZA:  Tell us briefly about your deceased children.  How  many are they?

WITNESS:   I lost two children but there're three in all but the other one it had nothing to do with human rights violations.  I'm going to talk about Vusi and Khulekane.  I do have a husband but since this happened we have separated to such an extent that I don't even know his whereabouts but I'm staying with my children at home.  We don't have any contact with him.   You husband, when this happened were you staying with him?   ---   Yes, we were staying with him and he used to come back on holidays and give us money to buy groceries.  We had a wonderful relationship.  At times we would write letters to him asking him to give us money to buy some groceries.  But we haven't had any contact from him.  We are suffering as a family.

PROF MAGWAZA:  We've heard your story.  Do you know where your husband is?

WITNESS:   We know where he is because he was working in Johannesburg but my youngest son used to go to him.  He also took him to a place of refuge in Johannesburg.  So my husband is in Johannesburg at the present moment.

PROF MAGWAZA:  Now, let's go on to another matter.  We want to talk now about your sons who were killed.  Let's start first with Zakhele.

WITNESS:   No, it's not Zakhele.

PROF MAGWAZA:  Tell us about Vusi.  What happened?  Maybe you can just start by telling us about Vusi himself, his life and what was he doing at the time that he disappeared.  How old was he?  What was he doing?  Was he at school or working?

WITNESS:   I'm not really sure about their ages because the eldest one died at the age of 22.  Vusi died at the age of 23 and the third one died at the age of 21.  He disappeared whilst he was 22 years old.  The one  /coming

PROF MAGWAZA: coming after him died when he was 23 years old.

PROF MAGWAZA:  So Vusi, how old was Vusi?

WITNESS:   Vusi should have been 21 at the time that this happened.

PROF MAGWAZA:  What was he doing at the time?

WITNESS:   He was at home.

PROF MAGWAZA:  Was he at school or employed?

WITNESS:   He was no longer at school but he was not employed because he did not have a reference book but he used to go to contract workers and work with them.

PROF MAGWAZA:  Did Vusi belong to any political organisation?

WITNESS:   Vusi started by being an Inkatha member but because Inkatha was now having internal fights, he decided to move away from home and he used to come back in the morning just to have his breakfast.

PROF MAGWAZA:  This is a very painful story.  I would like to ask you about Vusi.  You said Vusi started by being a member of Inkatha then he changed.  What did he become thereafter?

WITNESS:   He realised that they were having internal fights.  They said they were Inkatha during the day but in the evening they were Comrades and they turned against them until such time that he had to run away and he joined the ANC.

PROF MAGWAZA:  How did he join the Inkatha?  Was he forced or did he do it all by himself?

WITNESS:   When Vusi joined Inkatha he was coming back from prison and all the members or the members of the community were members of Inkatha Freedom Party and there was a certain house where, if you went in, they would tell you that you were a member.  If you spoke to an ANC member, you would be told that you're a member of the ANC.  Therefore they were not supposed to speak to any other members of other  /political