Human Rights Violation Hearings — Port Elizabeth — 1996-06-27

MZWANDILE EBENEZER MAQINA: Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen.  I would like to be brief, I know the time is very short.  I would like to start by saying I have come to give this evidence because of the community of Port Elizabeth because I would like them to understand clearly and have a vivid picture of what happened and this they should take as the true reflection of what I am going to say. Most of the time the people have been hearing one side, I never get an opportunity to explain to the community of Port Elizabeth, to state what is all this chaos and commotion that has been taking place.  I would like to thank and express gratitude to the Commission for presenting to me this opportunity to present my statement so that I can show and express the side which was never known and it was never exposed to all the people.
 I would like to start to briefly state the reasons for AZAPO to use my place as their hiding place.  After the house arrest and burning orders which were ordered and I was given, the two borders used me to participate in their programmes.  I remember AZAPO used to request me that I should be part of the June 16, when they have their organisations and their programmes and I was requested by the UDF to participate in the Dutch Reformed Church at Pengla so I am trying to show that they both used me as a person who was important.
 I was known that I have formed the BPC which is a Black Conscious Movement and I am more orientated to Africanism.  You can remember that all the preparations for Sobokwe's funeral were at my place, so the people understood that I was more orientated to the Black Consciousness Movement, more than the other side which believed in the freedom charter.
 I want to present this because I understand that this was one of the reasons which caused all the problems.  Both parties would come to my place and use me as one of their people.  It was on the 28th of April in 1985, it was the Easter weekend, Batata Gani is a younger brother to John Gani who is well-known to us.  He was shot by the police, so it was a very big funeral.  Amongst the speakers there, I was also requested to be a speaker.  This request came from the African Writers' Association because he was also a playwright.  I can mention Reverend Gani, Nzamo and Hija and all others, they were the ministers who were there.
 When I gave my speech I highlighted that there is this evil which has started to take the country by storm.  The evil called necklacing, so I was requesting that the people should try to abate from doing that and I mentioned the Mtenigeni family, Singape who was from Magaleni and the other two children who were burnt in the park.
 During that time there was no problem between the two organisations.  But after this speech that I presented that day there were threats which I received from the other organisation.  They said I could be targeted.  On the 30th April, the same year, there were comrades, a large group of them who came to my place.  
 So I thought that they had come to kill me so I requested that we should go outside.  Others came to my house and they ransacked the house.  But I realised that they wanted Mafonqozi and Nqonbona, those were the AZAPO members, I knew them.
 I tried to plead with them and they didn't even want me to talk here, they wanted to take me away.  I think my daughter is the one who saved me, she was five years at the time, because she was always clinging to me and she didn't want to leave me.
 I think the other person who might have tried to talk to them was Africa, I've forgotten his surname, because he was with them, he persuaded them to stop what they were doing.  I want to highlight the fact that I stated that they should stop this because they had said they are going to crush AZAPO, so I said that I would like to speak to the leaders of AZAPO.
 True to my word I did so and then we had discussions with the AZAPO members.  I know that the UDF members were informed about the results of our discussion because it was a peaceful discussion and we were trying to stop the killings that were beginning to sweep the country.
 I was at the court chambers in my offices and then I received a telephone call.  I was informed by somebody and he was one of the parents, he was a parent to Dekhera who was an AZAPO member.  She was requesting me to come, I went there and I found that there was a South African Police Force and there were policemen in their police vans.
 I found one of the children and he directed me to the house where there were children who were injured.  I transported these injured members to Livingstone Hospital.  I went passed my house, just to inform my wife that I was taking the injured to the hospital.
 Then they were taken to hospital and they received treatment.  I took them again in the evening, be able to take them back home.  When I got my place, they said there were about 40 to 50 young men.  They stated that there was a battle which had started and stated that there was a lot of houses which were being burnt.
 They were also threats that I would also get my house in ashes.  It was not long we found that young children, I think they were between 12 or 13 years of age, they came to my house and the AZAPO members chased them away.  Two were taken by these AZAPO members, that is why now I am accused of all this involvement with the AZAPO members.
 The children then were interrogated and they stated that they have been sent by Mr Monopogela.  They had a list of the houses that they were supposed to burn down and those that they have already burnt down.
 They had already burnt 5 houses and you could see that all those houses belonged to some of the AZAPO members.  And those members were already accommodated at my place.  You can imagine yourself the anger that could have started to develop amongst the AZAPO members.
 Then there was a suggestion that Mr Monopogela should be called so that they could come and confirm what was said by these children.  Some few members went to take in.  That is the reason why I say what Mr Monopogela said is half true.
 The leadership amongst the people whom we can announce and mention Gona, Zinama and others, they decided that they should go and call Monopogela.   Dukombena even mentioned this in the newspapers.  Mr Maqlati who was in the Regional Offices at AZAPO also stated that they went to call Mr Monopogela, in other words these never came to my instructions.
 I also wanted him to come so that we could iron out all the problems.  Monopogela came and he was nearly injured because some wanted to attack him immediately.  But we tried to stop the attack.
 Mr Monopogela then was questioned by the members of AZAPO.  The most important issue that was crucial was that they wanted to diffuse the situation and they also wanted to order him to go to the leadership.  There were about 40 to 50 of them who were able to come.
 Mr Monopogela stated that he was sent by some of the authorities of his organisation.  And he mentioned that he has been to them and reported that we have discussed something peacefully.
 There was an exchange of words.  The other members tried to escort him, because they realised that his life was at stake because there was others who didn't even want to listen to Monopogela so he was escorted by other AZAPO members to his place.
 If Mr Monopogela can speak the truth, he can state and mention the fact that really he was protected by the AZAPO members.  We were also affected by the fact that he even had a scar because he was attacked by one of them.  I would like to state that nobody was ever necklaced at my place.  I am surprised because Mr Monopogela made a statement the following day after our discussion in the City Press and he never mentioned anything about the necklacing that took place.
 He knew that I was trying to control the situation.  Unfortunately Mr Monopogela was the person who tried to speak badly about the AZAPO members and myself in New Nation City Press and Weekly Mail.
 Everybody who used to degrade us was Mr Monopogela.  Mr (indistinct) the other day he was (indistinct), he said this battle could be between Monopogela who is a charterist and Maqina, the Black Consciousness.
 I went to Liqina and informed him about the third force which might be instigating all the chaos among the organisations.