Human Rights Violation Hearings — Durban — 1996-08-28

WITNESS:   The shooting of Mfanafuthi Khumalo by Siphiwe Mvuyane was followed my first-born.  The whole thing started from my first-born, who was killed by UDF.  You see, this thing was confusing.  We could not understand UDF because we belonged to ANC.  We used to say, "You are comrades," and they said, "No, we just use necklace.  We are not."  That's what they will say.  This started 1990 up to the time when they killed him, and they were 20 in number.  They call themselves UDF, also with the ZP.  When I went to report to the ZP they just ignored the whole thing up to this day.  They threw him in the river at Umlazi.  After some time - because then it was 1990.  In 1991 the brother was now the victim.  He was one of those who called.  What this one did also - he wanted to revenge for what they did to the brother.  He stabbed the other one, and they started now going to the ZP to report this thing, and the ZP took this matter so serious, and they were looking so furiously for Siphiwe Mvuyane.  And they kept telling me that you must start right away to buy a casket, a coffin, because your son is going to die.  And Siphiwe will come, changing cars and using the old cars, and he will just park his car outside.  And he used to go with Mthambo, one of his colleagues he used to come to my place with.  And we went to the same church, we belonged to the same denomination.  When I asked him what was wrong, "What's happening?" they said, "We are looking for Thafu."  I asked, "What happened?  What's happening?   Why are you looking for him, like you just told me that you should buy a casket, a coffin, because your son is going to die?  As an investigator why would you do all these things?"  He said to me, "I still say this.  You must just buy a coffin because your son will die."  I said to my son. "You must run away, you know, escape, because things are bad."  Until Thafu decided to flee, and he left.  What Thafu did, went to this place at Section C, where he was hiding.  He got himself a place of refuge.  After some time I just heard - it was around four in 1992 - no, I am not sure.  It was 1992.  I just heard a knock.  They said, "Theresa, open.  Siphiwe did locate Thafu."   They said, "You come.  He is still alive.  He is still breathing.  He is not dead yet.  Just come.  Rush."  He kept saying, "You rush, because he is still alive.  He wants to talk to you."  I said to myself, "No, let me just go and rush and see what's happening," until I got there.  When I got to the scene of where the whole thing took place, the scene of crime, I found him lying down on the sofa in blood, a river of blood.  I just heard him talking, whispering, saying, "Come in.  Come in, I am still alive."  Siphiwe was not there, but there were some other policemen there.  Mthambo was there.  He used to go around with Siphiwe a lot of times - often.  And he said, "Come in.  I am still alive."  He showed me the bullet holes, and I told him that just - I am not going anywhere, and he started shooting me.  He shot me all over on the chest.  He was shooting me from very close, from a very close distance.  He insisted that I shall go home.  I refused.  I asked, "Why are you keeping this child here?"  He was shot at 4.00 am. and now it's around six, but you are still keeping this child here," up until Siphiwe arrived, and Siphiwe came with the station commander, who is still working at BB.  I think he had gone to fetch him.  I said to him, "Oh, we are so happy because you are not going to die.  Why would you kill this child so brutally

COMMISSIONER: /"like this?"

COMMISSIONER: like this?"  He said, "Oh, this dog is not dead.  I thought it is dead."  I said to him, "Oh, you intended to kill him."  I said to the station commander, "Please take this child to the hospital," and the station commander was just quiet and standing there.  He was just standing there looking at me so timidly.  I said, "Time is running out.  Please rush my child to the hospital," until the station commander could see that I am getting out of control now.  I was even shaking him.  He said, "Mvuyane, take this person.  You see his health is not in good condition.  Take him into this car."  It was himself, Mthambo.  You see, my problem was that I was not properly dressed, I was in nightdresses.  I said, "I will go and dress up, and I will join you."  When I got home I felt so helpless.  I said to the sister, "Go to Mshiyeni."   When she got to Mshiyeni she could see and find out that Thafu was not there.  I said - she told me that Thafu was not there.  I said, "No, where is Thafu now?"  I got so mad.  I was so annoyed about the whole thing.  I called Nthuchini(?) and I could not get any response until I sent Nhlanhla.  I said to Nhlanhla, "I don't know what's happening to this, to my son."  They saw a car and they said, "There is him, inside the car, and the car is locked up."  And they went to ask inside, "We thought this person was Mshiyeni, and he is still here.   Why don't you take him to the hospital."  Until one other police said, "No, we'll see what we can do."  They went back to the car, they tried to knock and tried to open the car.  They could not, and the one other helped and opened the car, and they found out that he was there with his eyes opened, widely opened, and the heater was on.  And I said, "Now I am going with you.

COMMISSIONER: /"We are

COMMISSIONER: We are taking him to Mshiyeni."  And Nhlanhla also insisted that I shall join and we go to Mshiyeni.  I forced matters.  They did not want, but I said, "I am going along with you to Mshiyeni."  We went indeed.  He was admitted, and I was like this, "Why is this happening to me?"  You know, I said to myself, "I can die.  Come what may."  I went to Mlaba, one of the attorneys.  I reported the matter to Mlaba.  I told him the whole story.  Mr Mlaba knew my background as well, and he asked, "Where is Thafu now?"  I said, "He is in hospital."  He said, "No, he should be discharged," and we tried all means to ensure that he was discharged from hospital.  Truly that was done.  You see, Mvuyane will patronise all the hospitals, trying to locate him so he can finish him up and just kill him, but he could not.  We take him to Ulundi, we were taking him all over to try to get some place of refuge for him.  I met him, Mvuyane, in town one day at West Street.  He said, "Where have you been?  Where have you been hiding?  I haven't seen you?"  I said, "No, you can kill me if you want to.  You know, you have been doing all sorts of things, misbehaving.  You can do whatever you want to do now."  You see, I was the first one to go to Supreme Court to open case for him, and he died thereafter.  But Mthambo is still there, and the station commander is still alive.

COMMISSIONER: What is the condition of Mfanafuthi now?   Is he able to - how have the injuries that he received, how have they affected him?

WITNESS:   His right arm is not functioning.  Even now he tries to do some aerobics exercises.  You see, when the bullets penetrated into him they went through - like you can see here.  He was operated about six times.  When he tried to exercise the bullets will move upper.  He has been operated many a times, and the other one has been extracted from the back.  I think he has been operated about six or seven times.  His right arm is not functioning.

COMMISSIONER: How old was he?

WITNESS:   He was 16 years.

COMMISSIONER: And you said in your statement that because he was continually harassed and victimised by Mvuyane he dropped out of school.  Is that right?

WITNESS:   Ja.

COMMISSIONER: Has he been able to go back to school?

WITNESS:   Yes.

COMMISSIONER: (Inaudible)

WITNESS:   He cannot write.  He went up to standard nine, but now he cannot write since his right arm has been injured.

COMMISSIONER: (Inaudible)

MFANAFUTHI KHUMALO: (Sworn, States)