Amnesty Hearings — Pietermaritzburg — 1998-02-10

BONGANI GOLDEN MALEVU: It is clear as I have already mentioned, that the white people were the only people who were in government, people who have the right to vote.
	We were fighting against this government and in order to pass the message to this government, we had to attack this white people since the white people were trained to protect the government.  We wanted to send a message straight to the government.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you.  Did anyone else have questions to put to the witness?

MR PRIOR: My questions will be directed to the other applicants, I think we have canvassed this, thank you Mr Chairman.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you.  Mr Arendse?

NORMAN ARENDSE: Thank you Mr Chairman, can I call on Walter Falibonga Tanda to be sworn in Mr Chairman.

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: (sworn states)

CHAIRPERSON: You may sit down, and please try to speak loud so that the interpreters can hear you.  We don't want you to be misinterpreted, it may cause problems later.  Do you understand?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Okay.

CHAIRPERSON: Okay, yes, Mr Arendse?

NORMAN ARENDSE: Thank you Mr Chairman.  Mr Tanda, how old are you now?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: I am 37 years old.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Are you married?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes, I am married.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Do you have any children?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes, three.

NORMAN ARENDSE: How old are they?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: One is 12 years old, the other is 8 and the last one is 3.

NORMAN ARENDSE: You are currently serving a 25 year sentence at Pollsmoor is that correct?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: And that follows your conviction in the Pietermaritz High Court in connection with the Crazy Beat disco murder?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Mr Tanda, did you go to school?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: I didn't.  Can you repeat the question please?

NORMAN ARENDSE: Did you go to school?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes, I did go to school.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Up to what standard?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Up to standard 2.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Standard 2, and how old were you when you left school?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: I left school in 1974.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Okay.  And after leaving school, did you go and work or what did you do, can you just tell us briefly?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: I worked at Brand number 1, which is a mine.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Yes?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: 1979.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Until?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: 1984.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Okay.  Now, the court found, the court that found you guilty and sentenced you, the court found that you were a member of APLA and that you were directly involved in the attack on the Crazy Beat disco?  Do you agree with those findings?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes, I agree with them.

NORMAN ARENDSE: You agree with the court's finding that you were one of the gunmen that shot inside the disco on the night of the 14th of February 1994?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: You also agree with the finding that you were the Commander of the Unit that perpetrated the attack that evening?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Okay, now let's just deal with why you launched the attack on the disco.
	Did you decide for yourself that you should attack the disco?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: It was an instruction.  I got an instruction from APLA member who was my Commander.

NORMAN ARENDSE: What is his name, what was his name?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: We were using code names.  He uses Mandla, Mzala, Power.  However, the name that we used to use at that name in Newcastle when trying to contact him, we used Jones which is also a code name.

NORMAN ARENDSE: So Mzala, Power, Jones is one and the same person, is that what you are saying?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: And he is the person who gave you the order?  Is that right?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: When did he give you the order?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: He came to fetch me in Port St Johns to meet Andile, that is where we sat and he told us that we have to go to Newcastle.  And that would be the following morning.

NORMAN ARENDSE: When was that?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: It was in January, but I can't remember the exact date, 1994, January.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Okay, so just to recap, in January 1994, he Power, Mzala, Mr Jones or Jones fetched you in Port St Johns, he took you to was it Umtata you said?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: And that is where you met Shiceka?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes, that is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Had you met Shiceka before that?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: At the time I was in Transkei, I had never met Shiceka.  I only met him on that particular day.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Now, just tell us a bit more about what order you were given by Jones or Mzala or Power, what exactly did he tell you?  what were your instructions?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: The instructions I get from Jones were that myself and Andile who will be my assistant in that Unit, as an assistant Commander, he also led me to two gentlemen and also gave us instructions that we should go to Newcastle and firearms are already in Newcastle and when we arrive in Newcastle we will attack places where we will see, places which are usually frequented by white people.

NORMAN ARENDSE: So, you must correct me if I am wrong, I am just going to summarise what you said.
	You were told that you were a Commander of a Unit, it is you and Shiceka and two other gentlemen.  You will come too and that you were to go to Newcastle, arms and ammunition is already in Newcastle and in Newcastle you must attack places where there are white people?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

CHAIRPERSON: Sorry, places frequented by white people.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Thank you Mr Chairman.

CHAIRPERSON: The difference maybe ...

NORMAN ARENDSE: Places frequented by white people.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes.

NORMAN ARENDSE: I put it wrongly, it is places frequented by white people?  You were told to attack places frequented by white people?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Thank you.  Did Power or Mzala or Jones identify these places?  Did he tell you exactly where these places are?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: No, he didn't identify them as to whether we should attack the restaurant or the disco.  It was us who selected the target.
	The instruction was to attack those places where white people normally meet.  So, we investigated those kind of places.

NORMAN ARENDSE: So you identified these places?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: Yes, that is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: And when was that, when did you first identify these places?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: As soon as we arrived in Newcastle, we went around town, looking as to how we could get in and out of the town so that on the day on which we are supposed to attack, we have to be sure that our members are safe.
	The reason why we went in, we were also going to look at the place, how we can manoeuvre around it, we were not specifically looking as to which places were frequented by white people or not, but in that process we managed to see them.

NORMAN ARENDSE: How many places did you identify as a target or a potential target?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: It was a restaurant, the disco, the two.

NORMAN ARENDSE: The restaurant and the disco?

WALTER FALIBONGA TANDA: That is correct.

NORMAN ARENDSE: Now, how much time did you spend observing or doing reconnaissance before you decided that the restaurant or the disco is going to be the target, or a target?