Human Rights Violation Hearings — Krugersdorp — 1996-11-12

DAVID SMITH: What happened is that I started to study.  After the incident, after 1991, while being at home I tried to study in the same industry, in the welding industry because I could not use my eyes anymore, but then I started doing it theoretically.  Then in 1993 I went to Japan where I continued with studies.  I am now at Shamrock Training Centre where I am a trainer.  I do very little welding work, but I do a lot of theoretical work.  Then I look at the big places.  I think I could have welded for a lot of money for another 20 years, but that was cut off.

YASMINE SOOKA: In those years, in a sense, one of the policies was to make the townships ungovernable and now one of the facets of the new Government is that rent boycotts are
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taking place in what were previously white areas.  How do you think a new Government should handle that kind of issue because it seems that when there were boycotts in townships, the police were ungovernable and they acted as if they had a licence to kill and to maim.  Now that the tables are turned, how do you think those kind of situations should be managed?

DAVID SMITH: As far as I am concerned I believe that if problems happen it should be talked through.  The police should indeed be at hand.  If meetings happen they must be allowed to come to the meetings, but it is because of mistaken information given to them that this kind of thing happened. I believe they are also people from our community and if they can join hands with the people of the community then this kind of thing can be dealt with in a better way.

YASMINE SOOKA: Thank you.

CHAIRPERSON: Piet Meiring.

PROF MEIRING: Mr Smith I want to ask you only a few questions.  The first has to do with your family circumstances.  You mentioned already that the great loss was that your eldest son who would have gone to university was no longer able to do so and that he then had to go to work.  Would he still desire to study or has he changed his mind?

DAVID SMITH: I doubt it.  At this time he also went and had a child.  Things go wrong when someone thinks that his life is changing.  I told him that if he could finish matric I would let him study further, but after all these things happened, he would have said to himself, no I am rather going to work because he no longer knew why my own state would be.  Especially when he knew I was bordered.  I did not know
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myself what work I would have.  After 20 years in the same industry, now you have to come up with something new.  That is why I took my chance and I risked and I continued with my studies.

PROF MEIRING: What about the second child?

DAVID SMITH: She is in matric now and if she succeeds and I have made applications already at Potchefstroom, she would go to the university there.

PROF MEIRING: What would she like to become?

DAVID SMITH: A social worker.

PROF MEIRING: Thank you and a last question.  I was touched by what you said about the hatred you felt and that through the course of time this changed towards reconciliation.  Would you believe that this is also the experience of others in Toekomsrus.  That hatred changes into reconciliation.  Would you have hope that our mixed up, crazy country could become a better country?

DAVID SMITH: I certainly have such hope.

PROF MEIRING: You have also said that your Christian convictions played a role in this regard.  The Church is the communities of faith of all the various faiths in Toekomsrus.  Do they continue to play a role in this regard?

DAVID SMITH: Certainly.

PROF MEIRING: Thank you very much.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you very much Mr Smith for giving us such a vivid account of the ordeal you experienced.  Especially when the community went through democratic processes and had a peaceful march and were provoked by the police.  Indeed you are right when you say the police acted irresponsibly and they always did what they liked.  They did that at the expense of people's lives. I am also very much
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impressed with the way you treated this thing, in a proactive way and even though your ambitions for your son were thwarted, at least you yourself decided to put things aside and look to the future and occupy the position that you occupy now.  Thank you very much.  We hope more of your kind of people would be involved in the communities to bring about this reconciliation that we are striving for.  Thank you very much for coming.

DAVID SMITH: Thank you.
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