Human Rights Violation Hearings — Grahamstown — 1997-04-08

NTSIKELELO BOTHA: Thank you, Sir.  I the undersigned, Mr Ntsikelelo Botha, hereby state under oath I am the person against whom certain allegations have been made by one, Temtem Kuhlane.  Temtem Kuhlane alleges that on or about the first of May 1986 as Port Alfred I wrongfully and intentionally shot and killed one Mntunyane Kuhlane.  I wish to respond to these allegations as follows.  It was on Friday the ninth of May 1986, I was travelling from Grahamstown on route to Port Alfred to attend a funeral of the father of a priest, whose name is Silimele Richard Magoma.  I was accompanied by my wife, Magatheba, as well as the driver of the vehicles, Sgidla Dumane, and we arrived at Port Alfred after dark.  It was approximately eight pm.
 Upon my arrival at Port Alfred I went to the Magoma home which was in the area and saw that there was a funeral and sent for him to be called.  He was called and I informed him that I was there.  When I left there I went to my mother-in-law's house, her name is Nolala, her surname is Ndumiso, so that I could rest.  At my mother-in-law's house there were people apart from myself and Mr Sgidla Dumane.  This was this woman known as Nyenye, her name is actually Nomalizo Simane.  They were sleeping by the time we got there, everyone was in their bedrooms asleep.  That night I or Sgidla Dumane were sitting in the dining-room at the time when Magatheba was preparing something for us to eat.  While we were sitting there a certain Kuki who was the grandson of Mrs Simane, came in with a very dark boy whom he called Gerald.  
 Kuki came to me and asked me to borrow him my firearm which was licensed.  I thought that he was joking and jokingly said that he could take it.  Kuki and Gerald Kuhlane then left and nothing further became of that.  A short while later, Mr Chairperson and honourable members of the Commission, Kuki came back with Gerald and a third person whom I recognised as someone that was working in the area and I knew him as Sdodo.  Sdodo was carrying a pick axe with a long handle and was not saying anything.  They did not say anything to me and not long thereafter Gerald and Sdodo left the house with Kuki remaining behind in the kitchen.  Approximately five minutes after they left I heard a knock at the front door, because it was a big house and while I was going Kuki passed me and went to open the front door and I was seated by this time.  
 As soon as Kuki opened the door the house filled up with people, young men, whom I could refer to as Comrades, who were masked so I could not identify them.  Because it was a big house some of them went to the kitchen as well and there were only two of us there.  A young man with a cap came to me, he was unmasked and his name was Kanini.  Upon looking at these people I estimated that there were approximately 200 of them.  While Sgidla Dumane and I were in the dining-room, Kanini approached me and it was apparent that he was the leader of the group.  He came, stood next to me and asked me what my name was and where I came from and what my line of work was.  Before I could answer him he slapped me and twisted my ear.  I did not become angry.  I told him without looking at him that my name was Ntsikelelo, I was from Grahamstown and that I was a Minister of religion and that I was there to attend a funeral.  
 He instructed me to get up and stand because they were going to burn Sgidla and I with tyres.  Before I could stand I was being stabbed.  I attempted to stand and I fell against the table.  I attempted to lean against the table.  I sustained 16 to 18 stab wounds.  In all this time I could have shot at them with my firearm, but I did not.  The problem that I had was that all these people were masked and I reached for my firearm when I realised that I was going to be seriously injured.  I fired a shot into the ground in an attempt to warn them to leave me, because I did not want to injure anyone.  Some of them jumped back, but it was dark in the dining-room and I felt a sharp object, a tomahawk or an axe or something strike me and I shot without looking at whom I was shooting.  
 I was terrified and I feared for my life and also the fact that I had pointed the firearm over my shoulder and blindly fired a shot.  I did not aim the firearm at anyone.  I was shooting at an unknown person behind me.  I would say that my intention was in my dizzy state, my fear that the person would repeat the blow from the axe or whatever the weapon was.  People started to run out and I followed them.  When I got to the side of the house I found tyres and 25 litre containers of petrol.  I am not sure whether they contained petrol or not.  All these people left through the gate and Sgidla and I threw ourselves down the bank and when they came into the stadium I could see them.  Many of them were running and I got a chance to run through the location.  I lost consciousness and came to only to find myself in hospital.
 The following day a brother of mine by the name of Velile Mfana came to fetch me at the hospital after he had heard that the Comrades were going to come and finish me off in hospital.  I was not strong enough to do anything yet. It surprised me when I was going to leave the hospital when I heard that Beckson Kuhlane had died, because Beckson was someone with whom I played soccer and we never had any argument or anything.  I never regarded him as an enemy, I regarded him as an in-law, because he shared the same clan name as my wife and there was no bad feeling between the two of us.  I was shocked by this, because I regarded him as my friend and I had absolutely no intention of killing anyone, because I was a Minister of religion and I worked in the Gini area and many of the Grahamstown Comrades knew me to be a Minister in Grahamstown.  
 I accept that the person who I shot was Beckson Kuhlane, but there was a reason for me having fired that shot, because it was a life and death situation and I can say that I did it in self defence.  A trial was conducted in 1986 and between 1992 and 1993 I received notices from court that I had to go to Port Alfred and a trial was conducted and the court found that I had acted in self defence and that if I had any intention of any wrongdoing, I could have injured more people.  It is incorrect that I went and attacked the deceased at his home.  The distance from where my mother-in-law stays, honourable members, is quite a distance from the deceased's home.  I would say that it is approximately 100 metres away.  Secondly, I did not know that they were coming to me, because of their involvement in organisations and I confirm that I was a councillor.  I am going to stop there.

CHAIRPERSON: We thank you, Mr Botha.  We are not in a Court of Law now, we are at a Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearing and all these submissions and statements which we receive, we will investigate, because we have to submit a report to the President which reflects the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.  So, all the statements which we receive here will be included in the report to be submitted to the President, including this one.  We will allow a few questions from the panel which we would like you to answer if you can.  Ntsiki Sandi.

ADV SANDI: I would like to ask you, Mr Botha, this Mr Sgidla Dumane, in which way was he related to you?

NTSIKELELO BOTHA: He was the driver of my vehicle.

ADV SANDI: Was he driving your vehicle for you because you were unable to drive?

NTSIKELELO BOTHA: No.

ADV SANDI: At the time you were attacked there, was he also attacked?

NTSIKELELO BOTHA: I cannot say whether he was stabbed or attacked or what, because I did not see anything wrong with him, but I saw him having been hung, he was suspended in the air while they were attacking us at that house, because he had on a soldier's coat.

ADV SANDI: Was he not, perhaps, your bodyguard?