Human Rights Violation Hearings — Alexandra — 1996-10-28

JABU JAMES MALINGA: Yes, I will talk, I am fine.  And Mtibi and Skieter and (indistinct) Van der Linde, they were in a green Chevrolet.  They called me, they said I must get into the car.  I wanted to know why.  They said you kaffir you mustn't ask a lot.  Get in.  Then I went inside the car and left off with them.  They took me into some bush in Alexandra where it is a highway at the moment.  They took some meat from the car, they said I must just go and get some wood for them.  I did as I was told.  And then they said I must make fire for them.  Thereafter they said I must braai the meat for them as well.  And thereafter they were eating and drinking alcohol.  They wanted to know why didn't I die on that day when I was shot.  I said I don't know.  They said you must tell us about your friends that you were with on that day and you must tell us about Tsetsi Mashini when you talked to him on that night at school, on the 15th June.  I must tell them what we were talking about.  I refused to tell them any details of our meeting.  Then they started beating me.  They said I knew too much, they will show me something that I don't know.  They handcuffed me and the fire was still burning at that time.  They took me towards the fire, they threatened to burn me should I not be prepared to talk the truth.  I didn't think that they would burn me or not.  Whilst they were assaulting me and the other one lifted my leg they dragged me towards this fire.  They started burning me, they said I must talk the truth.  I refused because I knew that should I tell the truth they will kill all my companions.  Then they burnt me.  I was dressed in an overall.  When they realised that I was
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burning they took something to extinguish the fire.  They extinguished the fire.  They said they wanted to know what we were doing on the 17th June.  They wanted the truth.  I still refused to tell them.  I was just being kicked, I was not aware of what was happening, I was unconscious at that moment.  I found myself at the clinic.  That is when I became conscious.  I can't remember what happened.

DR RANDERA: Can I just ask one other question related to that.  In your statement you actually say that they wanted to know about somebody called Theresa who had died.  In fact you say she had been suspected of being a sell out.  Was that what the questioning was all about or was it about your comrades?

JABU JAMES MALINGA: They were asking about my comrades.  Not about Theresa.

DR RANDERA: Can I take you to Christmas day 1986.  Can you please tell us again you were arrested by the police and interrogated.  Can you tell us why they wanted to interrogate you and where they took you on that occasion.

JABU JAMES MALINGA: I was at Kambuli's store at 220.  We were surprised the policemen and the soldiers were just arresting people at the street.  They just pointed at me and they said I must come with them. I wanted to know what happened, they just said come here.  When I got there they wanted to know whether I know Vincent.  I said no I don't know Vincent.  They said he showed us on the 16th Avenue, he is one of your comrades.  I said no I don't know him.  They took us to Jukskei by the water and we sat there for round about two hours inside the water and they started beating us.  I wanted to know is it legal for them to beat us up when they arrested us.  They said I talk too much, I have got a big
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mouth.  They called their sergeant and then he said that they must put me aside.  They left the other people, then they put me into the soldiers' van.  They took me to their camp at Calvin.  There they made us do exercises the whole day.  On the second day they said to me I can go home.  I wanted to know as to who will help me with my medical bill because my teeth were loose.  They said I must go to Mandela.  Then I didn't know what to say to them.

DR RANDERA: You say there were other people who were taken with you to the Jukskei River.  Do you remember their names?

JABU JAMES MALINGA: I don't know them because I had just met them there.  We were quite many of us, it was not only me.

DR RANDERA: Jabu, can you tell us about the political organisations to that you belonged to from 1976 onwards.

JABU JAMES MALINGA: In 1976 I was a supporter of Azapo.  And because of all this assault I decided to stop supporting Azapo.  In 1983 when the Youth Congresses started I enquired as to how can I be a member.   Comrade Paul Mashadele advised me as to how can I be a member and he introduced me to Tegera.  Tegera took me to my parents and they signed some forms.  That is when I started being an active member, up until today.

DR RANDERA: My last question, in the 17 year period that we are talking about were you ever arrested and did you spend a long time in prison?

JABU JAMES MALINGA: Yes, I was arrested in 1985.  I was detained for three months.  I was arrested in October of which date I cannot remember clearly and I was released in December in 1985.  That was my longest term in prison.

<UNKNOWN>: I would ask you to tell us in brief you said to us that on the 18th June you were not a student.  You said
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you saw school children as in the manner at which they were shot and you realised everybody had to be involved.  Can you explain to us because you were working at that moment how did you become involved with Mashinini.

JABU JAMES MALINGA: In 1976 I was not working and I was not a student.  I started working with my father at an early age.  And in those days we had not gone to work, we were just at home, me and my father.  That is when I started moving around with my friends and they told me that they were fighting against the whites for their rights because the white man were forcing them to use Afrikaans at school.  I was moving with them as friends.

<UNKNOWN>: When you say you were helping them can you explain to us what was your actual role.

JABU JAMES MALINGA: I didn't have any specific role.  I knew nothing about politics.  I was just accompanying them as they were singing.

<UNKNOWN>: As you were going with them is there anything that you did or were you just going around with them singing?

JABU JAMES MALINGA: The one role that I can say I really played was just singing.  I was not politically motivated.

<UNKNOWN>: On your statement there is a name of Theresa.  Can you tell us briefly about Theresa, who was she and as to how was she mentioned in your statement.

JABU JAMES MALINGA: No, I never mentioned Theresa in my statement. I don't know her.

<UNKNOWN>: Here they say that in 1978 you were taken to John Vorster Square and the whites tried to burn you because they thought that you were involved in the late Theresa's burning.
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JABU JAMES MALINGA: What I can say about Theresa is in 1978 Theresa was still alive.  We only heard about this in 1987/88.  That is when she died.    I was just being burnt because they wanted me to point out my friends and I must tell them about this Tsetsi that we are talking about on the 15th June here at school.  That was the main reason why I was burnt.  It had nothing to do with Theresa.

<UNKNOWN>: I will repeat again please can you tell us about this Theresa.

JABU JAMES MALINGA: She was not there at that year.

<UNKNOWN>: This tells me that there is something that you know about Theresa.  Can you just tell us what you know about Theresa please.

JABU JAMES MALINGA: What I can tell you is that I knew Theresa as a comrade.  I don't know what happened to her.  I just heard that she was killed.  I was not there. Because in those years Theresa was still a child.  I only knew her in 1984.

<UNKNOWN>: You say you only started knowing him in 1984.  Was she one of the comrades?