Special Hearings — Health Sector Hearings — 1997-06-17

BETTY NCANYWA: Thank you Madam Chair.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank the TRC for awarding us this opportunity, as well as the organisers, the Health and Human Rights Project who made this day possible for us to share some of our experiences during the period of 1985/86 while I was working at Livingstone Hospital in the Eastern Cape where the many atrocities occurred, Livingstone being the only Black hospital that was catering for the victims, because some hospitals were only treating White patients.  There are cases from the seventies but I will be focusing more on the cases that I was directly involved in.
 Most of the cases that we attended were gunshots and tortured burns and patients with severe depression.  Most victims were children, youth, adults, males and females.  Some died before they reached us.  Some died on arrival.  Some were taken before we could treat them, the Security Police would take them from the casualty department before we can even treat them.
 The casualty department and the operating theatres were very overcrowded and very busy and casualty was full of blood those days.  As nurses we were given an instruction that we mustn't obstruct the work of the security force.  We mustn't stand in the way of the police.  The only thing we need to do is to just treat the patient.  Even if we see people being tortured we must just keep quiet.  This was the instruction from the hospital management. 
 At some stage we were also asked - we were obstructed from visiting the political patients, as well as we were asked not to talk to them.  And we mustn't allow their families or visitors to them.
 I remember I was also called aside by my supervisor because of my involvement with Namda, distributing some document, trying to conscientise the nurses, I was called aside that the higher authorities were discussing me, so I must try to refrain from politics otherwise my future would be in jeopardy.
 One of the clients that I came across was Emson Banda, which was in the papers for many years and he was very depressed.  At that time I was working in casualty.  Then I tried to talk to him aside and I talked to the police to leave us alone, and then the guard was very nice and he left, because Emson was refusing to talk to people.  He covered his head, but later on he gained confidence and then he said to me please, I lie, I said I overdosed myself with tablets because I wanted to get into hospital.  Is it possible for you to get me admitted, just to get relief, even if it's one day, because we are being tortured in the cells.  
 So luckily there were progressive doctors in our team which I convinced and we tried to discuss how we can get Emson admitted.  Then we had to phone the head of department, Pat Naidoo, who was the head of the Department of Medicine at that time, so he gave us instructions from that evening we must admit all political detainees, whether they are cases or not.  And some of them there was no evidence of torture because of the system that was used to torture them.  So all of those wouldn't have symptoms, they were given a common diagnosis, that is severe depression.
 Gunshot patients were kept in a separate slate in casualty.  This was the instruction from the matrons.  And then that slate was taken to the matron's office and then they usually take the names of the people who were shot to a police officer who was situated next to casualty in a caravan.  And then that police officer would liaise with the Security Police and then those cases would be immediately guarded.  After treatment he would be taken to jail irrespective who shot them.
 As I mentioned some were taken even before they got treatment.  There were cases who were constantly coming to the hospital, like the MEC today of Safety and Security, Dennis (...indistinct) who would come with fractured arms, swollen faces and scars in his face.  There were many of them who are leaders today, like Sceros Uplan(?), Nkosile Jack, Sizani and Brian Sokuta and some of the students from Dower College.  I remember Donovan.  And they were kept in the wards and the police would come to the ward without talking to the ward sisters whenever they felt like taking the patient, irrespective of the condition of the patient they will just grab that patient and take them back to the jail.  And sometimes they confiscate the equipment that has been ordered by the doctor for occupational therapy just in front of us.  They were not allowed even to read papers whatever.
 Sometimes when they are bringing the victims, sometimes they escort one patient you find that more than ten policemen would come to the casualty department and then at that stage the casualty department was very small, and then they would come with big guns and keep fingers on the triggers and walking around terrifying the sick patient and children.  And sometimes they made our lives so difficult to work in casualty.  And then when you beg them to leave just few people and stay away they would just ignore us.
 It was a very traumatic experience those days.  Even if you were not working in casualty you would make a point that every day you pass casualty.  Sometimes I came across my own relatives and my own brother who was shot.
 I remember one evening there was a 16 year-old boy who was brought by the police, mishandled, his leg was hanging loosely, badly shot, and I remember Dr Brendan from Australia he couldn't take it that evening.  We were very, very busy, the casualty was very overcrowded, and he asked them, why are you killing the innocent people?  What are you going to say in front of court?  Why don't you finish your work?  Why are you bringing to us?  One day God will answer their prayers.  And South Africa is full of blood and injustices, and I am leaving this country, and he really resigned during that period.
 Dr Naidoo, we were working together in the Medicine Department.  He was threatened by the security forces, by the authority, the Medical Superintendent.  We will make these documents available and the people that we implicated because I don't want to mention their names in case we are in trouble, but we are going to submit them.  He was called several times, threatened with dismissal.  He was also threatened to appear before the Disciplinary Council.  
 And he also wrote to the Medical and Dental Council to report the ethical behaviour in the hospital.  And then the letter we still keep - we've got the letter.  The response from the Medical Council was that there are two sets of ethical conducts.  One that is subscribed by the Council, and one that was subscribed by the state of emergency, so we had to comply with those ethical conducts.
 At that time as nurses we felt that we had violated some of the rights of the patients because we were redirecting the patient not to go to the hospital.  We removed bullets, we referred some of them to the Namda doctors and some of the hospital doctors who used to work after hours and help the patients.  We also removed bullets but those complicated cases we referred to the GP's in the township.   And we were wondering where is the Medical Council.  Where is the South African Nursing Council who are supposed to protect the public, but they were not visible.  There is nothing they did during that time.
 I still remember when we battled, Dr Naidoo - there was a psychiatrist who was collaborating with the Security, who removed Brian Tsikudu from the Medical Ward to a mental institution, Elizabeth Donkin Hospital, and Dr Naidoo battled so much to get him back.  
 Some doctors we used to see them in casspirs with guns and you see them in labour wards. I still remember when they were mishandling our patients, being so rough to our patients, and one I think that day he forgot to remove his soldiers' boots, he came with those boots on duty, and he was so rude to the patient and I confronted him and I asked him, is it you that I saw in the casspir?  But he didn't answer me. I believe he was from the Free State.  But there were many of them who were seen by some of my colleagues.
 I hope some of my colleagues will come to the TRC and raise these issues, especially the matrons who were directly involved, to share these experiences and tell the nation what was happening those days, so that we don't repeat those mistakes in future.
 I would like to thank the Namda doctors who were there for us.  And then some of the White doctors were very supportive to our people during those days.  I thank you.