Human Rights Violation Hearings — Alexandra — 1996-10-29

COMMISSIONER: We welcome you, Mam.  We would like you to stand up to take an oath.

LESORO HILDA MOHLOMI: (s.s.)

COMMISSIONER: Who is with you, Mam?

LESORO HILDA MOHLOMI: She is my sister.

MS MKHIZE: I will help you to tell your story.  We can see that in your statement you came here with your story, a sad story and I would like you to tell the Commission shortly about yourself and your life and then after that you can tell your story about your child.  Thank you.

LESORO HILDA MOHLOMI: I made a mistake when I gave the briefers my statement.  I forgot to write that my child was shot in 1985.  In 1985 this child went to attend a meeting in the Noboshle hostel.  He told me that he was going to attend a meeting, a soccer meeting because he was a soccer player.  After half an hour some boys came to tell me that Ruben had been shot and he was taken to the clinic.  I went to the clinic but I didn't find him and they sent him to the General Hospital.  I went to look for him in the General Hospital and they shot him in the eye.  He slept there for three weeks and when he was discharged he couldn't see clearly.  They told me to take him to St John Hospital and he stayed there for two months and he was operated in this eye.  He came back and they gave him eye spectacles and in 1986 the security police shot Michael but before they shot
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Michael we were staying with one policeman in our yard and this police came to me to ask me whether I knew that Ruben was a comrade and I told this policeman I don't know anything about that and I asked him how did he know because Ruben was not his child.  And he told me that he knew because Ruben said that they did not want the policemen in the township and that conversation ended there.  After they shot Michael, on the Friday before the funeral day, he asked me that he wanted to go to the funeral and I told Ruben not to go to the funeral because he couldn't see clearly and if the police came they will shoot him because he couldn't see clearly and he couldn't run.  He didn't listen to me because he went to the night vigil on Friday.  On Saturday I heard that he was there in the night vigil and I asked him about that and he denied that, he said that he didn't go there.  It was on Saturday morning and he asked me to go to the funeral.  He wanted to go to the funeral and I told him not to go because he couldn't see clearly.  Because I was a person who was selling alcohol I asked Ruben to stay at home to sell alcohol.  At about ten o'clock my husband told me that there are many policemen in the township and they are shooting at people.  He told me to close my business on that day and at that time I told the children to close the shebeen and to stop selling alcohol and at that time Ruben got a chance to go to the funeral and I told him to eat because he did not eat that day.  I went to the room to sleep but I decided to make tea first.  Before I poured this tea three boys came in and they told me Ruben has been shot.  I asked them where was Ruben, they said he was taken to the clinic but they suspected that he was dead and one of my children, one of my sons, ran out and while I was going to
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the clinic I met Lucky Boy Sabule and I asked him where Ruben was.  He said that he was in the clinic but he was dead. I went to the clinic.  When I arrived there all the bodies were lying down in the hall.  I thought that he might still be alive and I tried to drag him out.  I tried to talk to him and I asked him where were you going Ruben because I told you not to go.  I took off his shoes and I took out a key from his pocket and a letter and in that letter he was writing about the ANC.  He was writing the letter to the president, President Mandela and I didn't know where he got his address.  One nurse came in and he asked why are you looking and talking at this boy because he is dead.  There is nothing we are going to do about this and that was then that I understood that my son was dead and I went back home.  It was the last day I saw Ruben there. When we went to the mortuary they refused to let us in they didn't want us to see them and the priest from Alexandra tried to help us and I would like to thank the priest of Alexandra who helped us to get the bodies of our children.  We got Ruben's body after five weeks and on the day of the funeral people who came to attend the funeral couldn't stay at home because they were not allowed.  It was only the family members who were at the house.  Even when we were preparing for the funeral the white man he used to come and to disturb us.  I remember one day the teachers from his school came to our house and this white men came in and they asked these teachers what were they doing there.  They told the white men that this was our student and we are here to comfort the family and they were told not to stay for a long time.  Even the comrades were not allowed in.  They used to come to sing and the police used to come in and to chase these comrades
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out when they came in.  Another thing is that I have one aunt who stays in Rustenburg and we phoned her to come and this policemen arrested her, they did not want her to come to the house.  Another thing is that I was born in Hammanskraal and when Mangope heard my son has been shot he sent the soldiers and the police to guard at my home there in Hammanskraal.

MS MKHIZE: Take your time, Mam.  We will wait for you and we will help you by leading you with questions.  After that I have received a letter that there was an inquest held in Randburg.  They told me to go there at nine o'clock.  I went there but I stayed there for the whole day.  They did not tell me how my son died and I couldn't understand why they called me there and I returned back home, even today I don't have a death certificate for Ruben.  I know that he is dead because his body and I buried him but I don't have a death certificate. I don't even know the name of the mortuary where he was.

MS MKHIZE: Drink water, Mam.

LESORO HILDA MOHLOMI: Another thing is that this policeman Pahlane who was staying at my home, I would like him to tell me whether he had arranged for others to kill Ruben.  He has got six children and they are all well, they have not been shot.  They are still alive, all of them.  And Mtebi he met me at Pick 'n Pay.  I went there to buy some groceries and he said to me Hilda I heard that your son has been shot and he is dead, I said yes.  He told me not to worry because these children have been shot by the police.

MS MKHIZE: Thank you Mam and we would like to ask you to clarify some other issues.  Here you have written in your statement about Ruben.  You told us they shot him in 1985
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for the first time.  At that time, according to your knowledge, was Ruben active in politics?  And in 1986 you said he was a member of the UDF. What about in 1985?  Was he a member of any organisation in 1985?

LESORO HILDA MOHLOMI: At school he was a member of Cosas.

MS MKHIZE: Did he have a gun?

LESORO HILDA MOHLOMI: I never saw him with a gun but he was a student at that time.

MS MKHIZE: I would now hand over to my colleagues to ask you questions.  I would hand over to Yasmin Sooka.

YASMINE SOOKA: ... get some clarity on something you said.  You said that you were living with a policeman at the time.  Did I hear that correctly?

LESORO HILDA MOHLOMI: Yes, I was staying with a policeman.  He was staying in number 7, room number 7 in my yard.

YASMINE SOOKA: And you said he in fact told you that your son was activist whose intention was to get the police out of the township.

LESORO HILDA MOHLOMI: Yes, that is correct.