Human Rights Violation Hearings — Cradock — 1996-02-10

BONGANI FINCA: We will now call upon Xoliswa Ethel Mboya.  Xoliswa Ethel Mboya.  We welcome you Miss Mboya.  We will ask Reverend Xundu to help you take an oath and after that Ntsiki Sandi will lead you with questions on behalf of the Commission.

REV XUNDU: Thank you Mr Chairman.  Xoliswa, can you please stand up.

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: (sworn states)

REV XUNDU: Thank you.  I hand over to you Mr Chairperson.

BONGANI FINCA: Mr Sandi?

MR SANDI: Thank you Mr Chairperson.  Miss Mboya, I see that in your statement which you gave in this Commission, you made a request to appear in front of this Commission to talk about your brother, John Vuyisile Mboya.  As I am looking at your statement, you said that your brother was shot in 1992, he was shot by the police and I would hand over to you now to tell us from the beginning to the end and I won't disturb you while you are telling us your story, thank you.

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Thank you.  In 1992, there was a toyi-toyi here in town.  After that, people dispersed and they went to their different homes.
 In the afternoon the police came in my home, looking for Vuyisile.  When my mother asked them why they were looking for him, they didn't say.  Again at night, the
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police came looking for Vuyisile and my mother was asking them, why were you looking for him, and they didn't tell her why they were looking for him, they just said we want him.
 And one day Vuyisile was sleeping in the shack together with his friend, the police found him there.  His friend came to our home, he knocked at the door and he told us that the police found Vuyisile.  I tried to go to the creche in the morning to go and tell there that the police had found Vuyisile and arrested him.
 When I arrived there, the creche was closed.  I found one man who was working there and he told me to go home, he will tell the people there.
 At that time Vuyisile was already killed by the police and they took Vuyisile to their offices.  When I came back from the creche, I heard some people talking, they were saying that Vuyisile was dead.  I came back home and then I told my mother that Vuyisile is dead, I heard that from people on the street.
 We tried to go out, looking for him, as he was taken by the police.  When we arrived at the office where he was killed, the gates were closed.  They were closed at the time he was killed, he was shot and killed.  We went to town to the offices in town.
 When we arrived there, they said they didn't know him.  We were confused, we didn't know where to go.  We stood there, there was one man who came to us and he advised us to go and look for him in the hospital.  He said that he might not be dead, he might be in the hospital.  We went to the hospital.
 When we arrived there, the security man told us that there is no such person there.  We went back to the office
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and the police told us they did not know him, there was no such person there.  We were so confused, we didn't know what to do.
 After a while we went back to the hospital.  When we arrived at the hospital, we found him there.  When we were looking at the drawer in the hospital, his mouth was full of sand.  I came back to my mother and I told her that it is true, Vuyisile is dead.
 When I arrived at home, there were comrades there trying to comfort my mother.  We tried to find out what happened to him as he was taken by the police, we couldn't find anything.  
 We wanted to know who killed him, we didn't know, we didn't find out.  Up until now, we don't know who killed Vuyisile.  There were rumours that he was killed by a Coloured police, again by a White police.  Just because we had nothing, we didn't do anything up until now.

MR SANDI: Where he was arrested, who arrested him at that police station?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: His friend couldn't tell us his name, he just said that the police took him.

MR SANDI: Who is this friend who was together with Vuyisile at the time of his arrest?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: His name is Maro Masole.  We tried to look for him, but we couldn't find him.  We were told that he is working at  George.

MR SANDI: In which office was he actually shot?  Was it at Sanlam?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: No, it was the office here in the township.  My mother asked the police before the funeral and they told my mother that he was shot because he allegedly removed the
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South African flag and he wanted the ANC flag to be in that building and that's what they told us.

MR SANDI: When they were talking about the flag, did you ask them what flag they were talking about?  Were they talking about the flag, the South African flag?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, they said that he was removing the South African flag and he wanted the ANC flag to be in that building.

MR SANDI: Are you talking about the South African Government who was not accepted by the people at that time?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes.

MR SANDI: What did this flag symbolise to the people as the Government was not accepted by most of the people?  Was this flag acceptable to the people?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: No, the people did not accept it.

MR SANDI: At that time when the police shot him, was there any eyewitness who saw this?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: No, there is no eyewitness because they shot him in the office, there were only police there.

MR SANDI: Was there any person who was prosecuted for murder?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: No, there was no one prosecuted.

MR SANDI: Did any police arrive at home and tell you why there is no charge of murder?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: No, nobody came.

MR SANDI: Did you consult any attorneys at home?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: No.

MR SANDI: Is that all you want to say Ma'am?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, that is all that I want to say.

MR SANDI: As we are concluding, as you are here today, do you have any request to this Commission?
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XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, I do have a request to this  Commission because he was a person who was supporting us at home.  As we are Black people, there are certain traditional things that have to be made for that person and up to now, we have no money to do those rituals for him.

MR SANDI: In other words you are saying that he was a breadwinner at home?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, he was a breadwinner at home.

MR SANDI: ; Is that all you wanted to say Ma'am?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, that is all.

MR SANDI: Thank you Ma'am, I will hand over to the Chairperson.  Thank you.

BONGANI FINCA: Thank you.  Tiny Maya?

MS MAYA: Thank you Mr Chairperson.  Miss Mboya, I would like to ask you a few questions.  How old was Vuyisile at the time of his death?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Vuyisile was born in 1961.

MS MAYA: You said that he was employed at the time?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, he was working at the mine, in the revenue mine.

MS MAYA: At the time of his death, was he still at work?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, he was on holiday.  They were striking at that time, so he just arrived from work.

MS MAYA: Did you get anything from the mines?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, my mother got money, but it was not enough.

MS MAYA: I can see that in your statement you said that he left behind a son.  How old is he?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: He is 17 years old.

MS MAYA: Where is he at the moment?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: He is staying with me and my mother.
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MS MAYA: Is he still at school?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes, he is doing standard 9.

MS MAYA: In other words, you are responsible for this son?

XOLISWA ETHEL MBOYA: Yes.  My mother is a pensioner and I am not employed.

BONGANI FINCA: Reverend Xundu?

REV XUNDU: Ma'am, I would like to ask you at the time that the police were alleging that Vuyisile wanted the ANC flag to be in that building, was ANC unbanned at that time?