Human Rights Violation Hearings — Moutse — 1996-12-04

MR MAHLANGU: ... and when I arrived at home that my father left with the police.  We went to bed, our hearts were very sore.  The same night the police arrived the second time and they arrested me.  They were surrounding the whole house and De Jager is the man behind this whole thing.  He took me to the cells and when I got into the cell many people were already there and I was released - this  brother of mine who is sitting next to me ran the whole marathon to and from the cells to check as to whether I was all right.  Until today I never knew where my father was and I was told that my father was released a long time ago and I said to them we don't see him at home, what happened to him then and there was no answer for this question.  My brother went to Witbank to search and he was told that my father had been transferred to Kwaggafontein.  And when we went to Kwagga we were told that he was released a long time ago.  I was working and I do not know what happened thereafter.  My aunt who was supposed to come with me was a witness to this whole issue but she couldn't make it today.  That was the last time I saw my father.  I am here before the Truth Commission to help me trace my father.  If it is possible to get him.  It is ten years already since his disappearance.  If it is really possible for the Commission to trace him. If he is dead we will be happy to get his remains so that we can give
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him a dignified funeral.

RUSSELL ALLY: Thank you for that, Mr Mahlangu.  If you could just please give us a little bit of background with regard to your father.  Just tell us a little bit about before his disappearnce, the role that he played in the community, what he did.  Just a little bit about your father.

MR MAHLANGU: My father was a headman for Tweefontein block G.  And he was the administrator of that area.  When people had problems they would come to him and he would intervene in their problems.

RUSSELL ALLY: Mr Mahlangu over the last few days we have been hearing about the conflict in this area, in Moutse Kwandebele.  About the different positions which people held.  The issue of Mbcoto on the one side and of those who were opposed to Mbcoto on the other side.  Now in this conflict do you know whether your father took any particular position?

MR MAHLANGU: People arrived and they called themselves Mbcoto and as the headman who was leading the people in that area they wanted him to call a meeting to tell the people under his leadership that they should all join Mbcoto.  And my father refused this.  He said we do not know the reason for you to canvass our people, we don't know the reasons for you to say people should join Mbcoto.

RUSSELL ALLY: Sorry, continue Mr Mahlangu.

MR MAHLANGU: I think for him refusing this Mbcoto painted him a liar and maybe they thought that he was an aggressive person that he doesn't want to join their group.

RUSSELL ALLY: Mr Mahlangu, are you also aware of the fact that because of what was happening in the area at the time, that there was an investigation into the activities and that a
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certain Wilson Madadla was sent to come and investigate what was happening in the area, that there were all these accuasations made against members of Mbcoto and that your father actually assisted in that investigation in that he actually helped Wilson Madadla to get statements that people were making about things which were done to them by Mbcoto.  Are you aware of that role that your father played?

MR MAHLANGU: I am not aware of everything you have said.  Maybe my brother has information that he can share with you.  I don't know.

RUSSELL ALLY: I am sharing that information with you, Mr Mahlangu, because we have been trying to find out as much about the disappearance of your father as possible and it has come to our attention and our knowledge that your father did assist Wilson Madadla in obtaining statements from people who were implicating particularly Mbcoto members in actions against them in tortures, in abductions, in killings and that your father as a headman was facilitating the taking of those statements and that it was soon after that that the police came and that your father was taken away.  Up till now unfortunately that is the only information that we have really been able to obtain.  But you said that you were taken away as well and you mentioned a De Jager.  Now the people who took your father away, do you know any of the people involved?  Do you know any of the names?  You mentioned six people. Do you know or have you been told of anybody who was involved in fetching your father from his house that day?

MR MAHLANGU: I won't be sure whether they are the real people who picked up my father but when I was given an explanation my mother said this white man was a De Jager and
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he was wearing his spectacles and there were another two white people and then three black people.  And this policeman who came to arrest me at night was the same person who took my father away.

RUSSELL ALLY: This is what your mother said to you.

MR MAHLANGU: Can you please repeat your question.

RUSSELL ALLY: The name you mentioned, Captain De Jager, was this what your mother said to you?  Your mother said that this was the man who was involved.

MR MAHLANGU: Yes.  My mother said the person who came to pick up my father was De Jager because he was the same person who came to arrest me.  He is the same person who picked up my father during the day.

RUSSELL ALLY: Now since this disappearance of your father, Mr Mahlangu, have the police ever come back to you on this matter?  Has anybody ever come back to you to report anything to you?

MR MAHLANGU: The police used to come but every time they arrive at home they were friends with Mbcoto.  There was this green uniform that they used to wear and we used to classify them all as members of Mbcoto.  These are the policemen who came home to take a few statements and they would say to us we will come back to you.  They would leave and never come back.  These are the policemen who used to come at home and ultimately they didn't come at all and I am convinced that there was a bribery of some kind, maybe to stop this investigation.  I really don't know.  But as I have indicated the police used to come and they were the Kwandebele police.

RUSSELL ALLY: Thank you again, Mr Mahlangu.  As I said to you that we have tried to follow up on one or two leads but up
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till now we don't really have anything more to tell you than
what I have already said to you but if we do obtain more information then we will certainly inform you and other members of your family.  Thank you again.

CHAIRPERSON: We are grateful for having you with us here and we give our gratitude to the family and take note of what Russell has said, that our investigative machineries are on and you will be kept duly informed about whatever findings we make.  Thank you.