Human Rights Violation Hearings — Karoo — 1996-10-07

MARY BURTON: Michelle - Michelle you can take them - shame the [indistinct] things.  
We call our next witness to the stage, Ms Mina Wana-Mbekushe.

ADV POTGIETER: Do you want the prisoner with her on the stage [indistinct]

MARY BURTON: Can you hear me all right.

MINA MBEKUSHE: Yes I can hear you.

MARY BURTON: Please could you stand then to take the oath.
MINA MBEKUSHE  Duly sworn states

MARY BURTON: Thank you - you are very welcome here today and your son who is here to support you - is that right.  And your - your evidence - your testimony to us today is going to be facilitated my Ms Seroke.

MS SEROKE: A good morning Ms Minah we welcome you and your son here today and we would like you shortly to tell us what happened on this day of 14th of December 1989.

MS MBEKUSHE: I would like to start to begin where I first suffered.  In 1986 I was arrested.  I was detained and when I was - when I came out of prison, I came out of prison in 1986 and I was arrested again and before I went out of prison, they took my clothes outside the house and people took everything I had.  When I came out of prison I stayed with other people, because my furniture was taken out of my house.  
My son Sizakele Mbekushe told me that they had a youth meeting on that day.  He went out to the meeting on that day.  At about five to six p.m. we heard people singing -  toi-toiing and we heard gun shots while people were toi-toiing.  After a while my sister's child came in and said that my sister is calling me.  When I arrived there I saw my son lying down.  I called him Sizakele - he could not say anything out of his mouth.
I asked other children who were around to go out - and to go out and find a car.  When we arrived at the doctor in front of the OK, the doctor told us he was already dead and we have to take him to the hospital.  We took him to the hospital and we came back.  When I asked who shot my son, they said it was Ketile.

MS SEROKE: Please be strong and take your time - and take your time.  We will wait for you.

MS MBEKUSHE: And I just woke up in the hospital. I didn't  know what happened and after that they took me home so that  I can arrange a funeral for my son.   These people were not arrested.  People who killed my son they were not arrested.  Instead of arresting them, police arrested those who were toi-toiing.
I was not sure exactly who shot my son.  Between Ketile - between Ketile and Thabo - I was not sure exactly who shot my son, but only the comrades who were together with my son were arrested.  
After the funeral, it was in December, in January I received a letter saying that I should appear in court in the charge office.  We stayed there for a long time and after the court [indistinct]  called me.  And when we went to the Magistrate, the Magistrate just said that he didn't know anything and the case just was suspended. 
 When I came out of prison, I did not get any employment, even now I am not working.

MS SEROKE: So now you are telling us that when this was happening in 1989, you have been in prison, you were in prison in 1986 - why were you arrested at that time?

MS MBEKUSHE: It was due to the state of emergency - they said that we were terrorists.

MS SEROKE: After they arrested you,  why did they took your furniture outside your house?

MS MBEKUSHE: When we were in struggle, we boycotted the Rand.  They took me to prison and then they took my furniture out of my house when I was in prison.

MS SEROKE: In other words this was done because you boycotted the Rand and you were not there.  What happened to your children when these police took your furniture out of the house.

MS MBEKUSHE: They all wanted to arrest  me and my children.

MS SEROKE: This Ketile and Thabo who are said to have shot your son - what, who are they and what are they doing?

MS MBEKUSHE: They were the  [indistinct] at that time.

MS SEROKE: Why did they say they shot your son?

MS MBEKUSHE: They did not appear in court and they did not explain why they shot my son.

MS SEROKE: Sizakele and other youths - were they throwing stones in the houses, because Ketile and Thabo are said that they shot  Sizakele because he was part of the people who threw stones.

MS MBEKUSHE: I don't know about that, because there was no court case or there was no evidence given concerning that matter.

MS SEROKE: Was there - there was an inquest and a post-mortem was done and it was done - that he was shot in the stomach, but the Magistrate said that there was no one to be blamed,  there was no one responsible for his death.
But is clear that Ketile and Thabo were the ones who shot your son.  Who is supporting you at home at the present moment.

MS MBEKUSHE: I am working at the office at the present moment and I am getting a salary.

MS SEROKE: Do you have any other children who are still at school.

MS MBEKUSHE: Yes, I do.

MS SEROKE: How many are there?

MS MBEKUSHE: There are five.  One of them is in Cape Town and the other one just returned and the other one is in Kimberly and the two are here in Secondary.

MS SEROKE: Can you still remember in which standard are they.

MS MBEKUSHE: The two - the two oldest are in Cape Town in the university.   The one is Mabute Mbekushe.  The other is in Kimberley.  The other one is in standard nine.  And the other one is in standard seven.

MS SEROKE: Who is helping you in educating your children.

MS MBEKUSHE: There is no one helping me, except the one's in Cape Town.  They are having bursaries.

MS SEROKE: You say here you had a attorney Moosa.  Is he the one who was helping you in the case of Sizakele?  Is this lawyer still around.

MS MBEKUSHE: Yes, he is.

MARY BURTON: Ms Mbekushe thank you for coming to tell us about what happened to your son Sizakele.

MS BURTON SPEAKS TO MR ROTHO AND THEN CONTINUES TO SPEAK TO MS MBEKUSHE: Ms Mbekushe is there anything else that you would like to say.

MR ROTHO: Are you asking me ma'am?

MARY BURTON: No I am asking Ms Mbekushe if she wants to add anything.

MS MBEKUSHE: Ketile ma'am is still around - he is walking around in De Aar.

MARY BURTON: Thank you - it is very, very hard for you to once again relive the loss of your son and we thank you for coming to tell us about it.  We have noticed that during all the stories that we have heard of the activities of people in the De Aar area, the membership of DARA and I wonder if you yourself Mrs Mbekushe were a member of the women's association which I believe was also strong in this area.

MS MBEKUSHE: Yes, I was a member.  I am still a member of a political organisation, the ANC.

MARY BURTON: And Mr Rotho referred to the advice office that was being conducted in Mr Pickup Tantsi's house and so we are gathering together the threads of so many organisations that were working hard in the area at the time and we hope that that kind of leadership and activity is not lost to De Aar.  That people are still willing to work for the community.  Even in this new society we still need people who can help one another to deal with the problems of today, even if they are different problems from the problems of the past.
We thank you both all very much for coming today, for being with us and helping us understand the truth of what happened in De Aar, thank you.