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

CHAIRPERSON: Is Moshani in?

DR RANDERA: Yes.

CHAIRPERSON: Number three.

DR RANDERA: Yes.  Vries is out, okay.

CHAIRPERSON: Okay.  We are going to call our next witness, Moshani, Barry Daniel Moshani.  You do not mind doing the oath and leading as well?

DR RANDERA: Can I, yes, okay that is fine.  Mr Moshani, good morning.

MR MOSHANI: Good morning.

DR RANDERA: I trust you are refreshed after the tea break.  I want you to relax, take your time, but before we get into your story, which is taken us to December 1985.  It is related to the death of your brother, Swelitsha Wiseman Dambusa by the South African Police and related very much to what happens in this part of our country which is the mining area.  An involvement of miners and management at the time.  Can you please stand to take the oath first?

MR MOSHANI: (Duly sworn in, states).

DR RANDERA: Thank you Mr Moshani you can sit down.  Before you get into the story perhaps you can just tell us about yourself and your brother.  How big was your family, what was his work, how old was he at the time of his death?

MR MOSHANI: At my home we were six.  My elder brother as
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well as my sister and my mother.  He is the one who was working at that time at the Randfontein mine.  At the time I was still looking for a job.  Then in November 1985 my brother came to me in Mohlakeng location and he told me that I should go home and I wanted to know from him as to how I should go back because my wife at the time was working.  He said to me there were riots and boycotts so I should go back home.  He offered my money, but I did not got, but at the end of November, it was about the 30th.  He gave me some more money to go back home.  He told me that if I did not want to go back home, he would go home himself.  Then I told my wife that my brother said I should go home and I left my children with my wife.  I stayed for about a week at home.
 On the second week of my stay I just had a gut feeling that I should not run my usual road work because I was also doing road work.  Then during the week my uncle came.  He had come to tell us bad news, that my brother had died and I wanted to find out as to what had happened.  He told me that there was a meeting at the Carletonville mine and when they went back to the compound to address a certain meeting that was going to be held.  According to his statement he told me that when this meeting was being addressed there were certain people who were calling for the closure of a certain bottle store which was built within the mine.  As they were still talking and marching outside to the bottle store, there is a certain white person by the name of Piet Rademeyer as well as policemen who came.  They accosted my brother and the rest of the group.  
 Apparently an argument took place that led to him having a fight with a white policeman.  My brother was apparently fighting for the policeman's gun.  There was a 
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certain car that appeared and it him the white person and Rademeyer gave orders that my brother should be shot.  He was shot on the spot.  
 As I have come before this Commission it is because my brother had been shot and I was not working at that time.  My brother was working.  He is the one who was the breadwinner and he was looking after the family.  He also has children with different women and I was supporting the children when I was still working.  Now that he is deceased I came back to look for a job in Johannesburg and I, ultimately, got a job in Randfontein.  When I got this job in Randfontein I was playing sports.  I played rugby in particular and I got injured, my spinal column in 1991.  I was taken to the mine hospital where I was admitted and ever since then I have been in and out of the hospital.  There was no particular treatment that they gave me except rubbing stuff and they treated me with some ice tubes.
 I went to a certain Dr Morula who conducted an X-ray and told me that I should undergo an operation.  I was sent to Lesedi Private Clinic to undergo the operation.  When I came back from the operation I was no longer fit to work in that particular department because now my health had changed and my health status was not satisfactory.  The mine staff or the mine personnel dismissed me because they said there was no longer a job for me.  Now I want this Commission to investigate as to why Rademeyer shot my brother because today I have got my own kids, but I cannot send money home because I am not working.  My wife is working.  My story is as short as that.

DR RANDERA: Mr Moshani, thank you very much.  If I can just ask a few more questions.  How old was your brother at
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the time of his death?

MR MOSHANI: At the time when he got shot I shall think he was.  He was born in 1950.

DR RANDERA: So we are talking, okay, thank you.  You have told us that he has two children.

MR MOSHANI: Yes.

DR RANDERA: How old are they?

MR MOSHANI: The other one was five years old at the time and the other one was still very young, but I am not sure how old she was.  He was not married.

DR RANDERA: Now, you talk about home.  Where is home?

MR MOSHANI: My home is in Alice, Ciskei.

DR RANDERA: Your brother was a member of the National Union of Mine Workers?

MR MOSHANI: Yes.

DR RANDERA: Now, this person called Rademeyer that you are talking about, was he a member of the police force or of the mine security?

MR MOSHANI: He was part of the management in the mine.

DR RANDERA: Were there other workers who were killed or injured on that day?

MR MOSHANI: Yes there were quite a lot of people who were shot on that particular day, but my brother is the only one who died.

DR RANDERA: The dispute at the mine, was it only around this bottle store or were there other issues that the workers were arguing about?

INTERPRETER: It seems the channel of the witness, the witnesses channel has not been set properly.  It is causing confusion.

DR RANDERA: Sorry.
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INTERPRETER: Xhosa is in channel three.

DR RANDERA: Can you just put channel three there?  No.  Mr Moshani, if you do not understand, come back to me.

MR MOSHANI: Okay.

DR RANDERA: Alright.  I just want to ask the question again.  The dispute that was taking place at the mine, this was at Carletonville mine, is that right?

MR MOSHANI: It was in Randfontein.

DR RANDERA: Randfontein?

MR MOSHANI: Randfontein, yes.

DR RANDERA: And the dispute, was it only about the bottle store or were there other issues?

MR MOSHANI: They wanted to close down the bottle store which was operating within the mine as well as a certain shop.

DR RANDERA: The workers wanted to close it down?

MR MOSHANI: That is correct.

DR RANDERA: And who actually shot your brother?  You say Rademeyer gave the order, but who actually shot your brother?

MR MOSHANI: I will tell you what I was told.  They said a certain policeman who was nearby was given the orders by Rademeyer.

DR RANDERA: Was there an inquest?

MR MOSHANI: There was absolutely none.

DR RANDERA: Did you approach the National Union of Mine Workers yourself?  Did they conduct an inquiry?

MR MOSHANI: This union is the one that actually made attempts to conduct a research because the people at the mine did not want us to get my brother's body.  They wanted the body to be burnt down.  The National Union of Mine
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Workers helped me out with regard to getting the body back as well as sending the body home.

DR RANDERA: Did your family lay a charge at all?

MR MOSHANI: No, we did not lay any charge.

DR RANDERA: Mr Moshani, I do not have anymore questions.  Perhaps my colleagues might have some other questions.

MR MOSHANI: Thank you.

CHAIRPERSON: Piet Meiring.