Human Rights Violation Hearings — Winelands — 1996-10-15

WENDY ORR: Ms Manyefane can you hear me?

MS MANYEFANE: Yes, I can hear you.

WENDY ORR: Can you hear my voice through the headphones? I would like to say good afternoon to you and your daughter that you brought along today to assist you.  Before we listen to your testimony, I would like you to stand to take the oath.
KOLEKA MANYEFANE Duly sworn states

WENDY ORR: I'll now hand you over to my colleague that is going to assist you in giving your testimony.

REV XUNDU: Thank you Mr Chairperson, good afternoon Ma'am can you hear me properly?  You are Ms Manyefane, what is your clan name?

MS MANYEFANE: What is your clan name?

REV XUNDU: Maxhashu, what is your clan name?

MS MANYEFANE: Mashangu.

REV XUNDU: We have a report here ma'am that the unrest in this area caused the death of your son Thembelani, could you briefly tell us what happened that day.

MS MANYEFANE: It was the 19th of May in 1986 at about 10 o'clock perhaps 11 o'clock - there was unrest along the Q-block.  Both children and elderly people were helping a UDF member to move.  There were Casspirs casing our young boys - Casspirs driven by the boers.
 I got a report that Thembelani was going the Q-block screaming.  I left my house running towards the Q-block - as I turned the corner where my son had turned I saw him on a field, lying on his back.  When I got there he was still breathing but with difficulty.  He was bleeding everywhere from head to toe, I then turned back.  The people that stay in my block - the H-block - were waiting for me.  I then called them.
 They could not hear me, I went closer trying to call them.  Then a young man, Petrus Mangena, came also my husband came.  They then realized that my child  is dying.

REV XUNDU: Excuse me ma'am.  In this attack what does the report say, is - is it the police that shot your son or the AZAPO?

MS MANYEFANE: My shot was being cased by the police but it is the AZAPO children that were standing next to him.

REV XUNDU: Were the police taking photographs at the time?

MS MANYEFANE: No, they were watching.  I don't know exactly what they were doing because I was in absolute shock.  But it was the boer police standing there watching.

REV XUNDU: Then your husband, Sydney, organized transport?

MS MANYEFANE: Yes, he organized transport.  Botes came with his transport, they then left to go to the hospital.  They asked me to - to stay behind.
 When they got the hospital my child was to injured and he had to be transferred  to the Tygerberg Hospital.  I was there at the time and I insisted that I see my son.  He was under an oxygen tank at the time, it is his head that was meagerly injured.  There was internal bleeding on his brain so he could not be helped.

REV XUNDU: Was he taken to Tygerberg?

MS MANYEFANE: Yes he was transferred to Tygerberg.

REV XUNDU: Then you later ascertained that there was a difference between - because he just - his health just deteriorated?

MS MANYEFANE: The next day the Referent came to my house, I was already sleeping.  My husband was not there because they had to be on guard as the AZAPO wanted to attack us.  My husband and other men woke we up to tell me that my child had passed away.

REV XUNDU: Then there was a funeral Ma'am, is that so?

MS MANYEFANE: There would be prayers -  night  [indistinct]  but the police would interrupt.  We tried to continue with our prayers but the police would come, demanding that there should be no prayers.

REV XUNDU: How did the funeral go Ma'am, was it peaceful or were the police there?

MS MANYEFANE: They were there but the community wouldn't let them take over.  The funeral was delayed because they would not let us bury my son.

REV XUNDU: After the funeral did - was there a court case?

MS MANYEFANE: After the funeral I cannot remember how many days elapsed but the white policemen came to my house.  They were taking us to the Police Station to make a statement.  I was the only one at home, my husband was at work.  I asked what statement do you want, they said a statement in reference to my late son.  I said I'm not going to make a statement because a statement is going to be made by perpetrators and the Lord.
 They said I - this is not acceptable, I must go and make a statement.  I did not go the first time, the second time when they came my husband was there.  My husband then said I should go, they wanted to know what I had seen.

REV XUNDU: After the statement was there a court case perhaps?

MS MANYEFANE: No there was no court case, but after a long while - the following year a car with a Cape Town registration came to my house saying that there are people of the Law from Bellville.  They came to tell us that we were requested to go to Bellville.  My husband did not go to work that day, we drove to Bellville.  At about 12 when we got there these boers  said they have called us to tell us that there is no case because they can not get the perpetrators.
 Amongst these boers there was a police called Victor, these police that were prosecuting us even after they had killed my son.

REV XUNDU: What - what - what's this police's name?

MS MANYEFANE: It is Victor.

REV XUNDU: Victor has been mentioned in a lot a cases.  Just reverting back ma'am, Thembelani was 20 years of age.  Was he at school or was he working?

MS MANYEFANE: We was working sir.

REV XUNDU: Where was he working?

MS MANYEFANE: He had been working in a butchery.

REV XUNDU: Did Thembelani have a pension in the butchery?

MS MANYEFANE: No, there was no pension but what the employers did is to give a donation to us.

REV XUNDU: Did Thembelani have a child?

MS MANYEFANE: Yes, Thembelani had impregnated a child.  When Thembelani died this child was 3 months old.

REV XUNDU: What is our request to the Commission Ma'am?

MS MANYEFANE: Since Thembelani died I have been of ill health.  Thembelani has this child, it the Commission can help me and Thembelani's child I would appreciate that.

REV XUNDU: Have you finished ma'am, is there anything else you'd like to say?

MS MANYEFANE: I also request that the Commission investigates about this case.  The court in Paarl and Bellville was not investigated in a satisfactory manner.  If the Commission could investigate for me and do what it can for me I would appreciate that.

REV XUNDU: Thank you, I will ask Wendy to read the results of the Investigation Unit and then I will hand over to our Chairperson, thank you.

WENDY ORR: I would just like to - to let you know that we have started investigating this matter and our investigators have retrieved the Inquest Docket from Bellville Court and I will read the result of the inquest in Afrikaans as it is in the document.  
The cause of death is stated as being a head injury when he was attacked by a group of black people.  This assault took place during the morning and the perpetrators could not be identified.  
As you say you are not satisfied with that so we will indeed investigate this matter further as we do with all cases which are brought to the Commission.

CHAIRPERSON: Any questions?

MS MANYEFANE: Yes, Mr Commission.  I have been told that the people who had killed my child are unknown.  Even though after I made a statement in court I don't know but there were eyewitnesses there that gave me names.  I included these name in a statement, the statement that is in Paarl.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you ma'am, they will try to investigate this matter.  Thank you very much ma'am, may the Lord console and comfort you.  The Commission will endeavor to investigate this matter.  Perhaps the information that you have given us that you are not to well, perhaps we could present this to our Precedent.
Maybe he can help you, as a Commission we do not have the strength or the capacity to help you.  We will however recommend to your Precedent that somehow you'd be assisted.  It will be our Precedent and the Parliament that will give the final conclusion as to how you are helped.