Human Rights Violation Hearings — Krugersdorp — 1996-11-13

DR K NAIK: I just want to refer -  I will leave these things with you. They have made photostats of my things, but these things were not. I knew these things would come up. I mean, what is the bottom line, is that you have to tell the truth.  I mean, I couldn't not say that my brother and my cousin were State witnesses. I mean, I can't not say that. So I have actually brought the things in terms of the article.  But let me just refer to the article that appeared in the Sunday Times of November 14th 1971.  That actually referred to my sister making a statement to the Sunday Times reporter
"Roodepoort family lives in fear since
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security raids."
Taht is what was highlighted by Mrs Desai. I must actually at this juncture say that you know, Mrs Desai had not borne a grudge against anybody.
 When she had come out, we actually had a relationship, communication relationship. I must actually also thank publicly to her that she had not borne any grudges. This article referred to the fear that was actually instilled in people in Roodepoort. On that particular thing my sister received poison letter and I have given this copy for the Comission's benefit. 
"So now you blood lot of Indian, squealing like a lot of stuffed pigs because the government and the security police have got you all tagged. Good. I tis only a very great pity you cannot all jump from a 10th floor window. We sure will apprecite that effort on your part. We Afrikaners hate you every single bloody Indian, and as from now on, watch out, every Afrikaner will be a potential detective. We will hound you.  Every single bloody Indian will be hounded out of South Africa.  You have all the marvellous life here, but not any more. From now on you will all have reason to be scared to open your doors. You will all have reason to be scared to walk in the streets at night. If you think you can start terrorism in our country and get away with it, then it is
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time you get your own medicine back. Get out of the country, go back to your filthy India or to go to England where it is a collection place of all you saboteurs. I suppose you will also again run to the Sunday Times with this letter.  Good, you just do that. We all know that the Sunday Times is the instigator of terrorism and sabotage. This paper is in any case nailing the lid on its coffin, good and solidly. Just watch out."
Now that is also the reason that I shoulda ctually remain in South Africa.  Thank you.

CHAIRPERSON: Dr Naik, thank you again for coming today.  Again, you grappled deeply before you decided to come.  I am glad that you did come. I hope that you actually gained some benefit from coming today too.
 We have listened very closely, particularly to your point about the question of being labelled as a spy and the disinformation that went with that.  Although it hasn't featured very largely in many of the stories that have been told to us during this eight months, I hope it will be part of our report and recommendations will come relating to that.  That area can be so dangerous and we know, for example, and we have read about what has happened in East Germany, where it wasn't only to do with perceptions, but children spied on their parents, husbands spied on their wives.  In all that, all those reports were kept. Now in South Africa of course it is not that easy. 
 We have also, I mean, we have also heard of stories
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 where people were accused of being spies in the camps outside the country and what happened in those situations. So it is an area that we need to look at very closely.
 I also want to make the point, and you yourself said that you were politically conscious but not a political activist. Mrs Desai has also made that point. There are so many other people who have made that point throughout the last eight months. But nonetheless, people got caught up in that difficult period and that period of turmoil in our history.  We are glad that you stayed and you come today to talk about your involvement. We thank you again for coming.

DR K NAIK: Can I just make one little comment in light of what you said now.  Please actually be assured that I was actually hounded by the police, the security police all the time. I need to just relate a small incident. When I actually got a post at Wits University in the Applied Maths Department, I was actually visited by the police. They said oh, "jy het by die Kommunistiese plek gegaan, ne".  You see that was the type of fear that they actually instilled in you.  The inspector who had come to reinstate me, told me - the late Mr Moonsamey - "mnr Moonsamey, jy moet sorg dat hierdie man nie baie ly nie, want hy het baie gely", and of course that didn't work because he actually also turned against me in about two months time. He called a meeting in my lab and said this man is a traitor. You see, this kind of thing.  There was a flag-burning ceremony in Wits University and I was actually hounded by the police. They brought in some photographs and said, but oh, we don't see you here. I said listen, you people said I must not attend political things, so I didn't attend. They wanted me to identify. So actually you got abused from both sides. I hope that this
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will come to an end in this new democratic South Africa.  Thank you, Mr Chairman.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you, Dr Naik.  I think this would be an appropriate time to break for tea.  We will come back at quarter past 11.
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