Amnesty Hearings — Bloemfontein — 1991-09-08

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: I can explain to them about this incident but the name is not Thabang but it's Thabatha.

ADV MEMANI: Do you know her surname now?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: I suppose his surname is Thabatha if I'm not mistaken.

ADV MEMANI: I hope in due course Mr Stander will be able to help us.
	Now will you tell us about the incident.

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: In this incident Mr Thabatha, he was detained together with Citi.  Himself, he was detained about the activities of United Front.  He was the main organiser of United Democratic Front at Vulamasango.
	The instructions given to us - we were supposed to go and petrol bomb his motor vehicle because that was the car he used to travel all over the area for United Democratic Front.
	The instructions were from Lieutenant Shaw because he was the one who was supposed to handle everything and he want to recruited him so that he must be our informer.  Together with Mamome he tried to recruited him so that we must have information about UDF, that is United Democratic Front.  
	I managed to make two petrol bombs.  Mamome came to my place - brought along a tyre inside the boot of the vehicle.  Together we went to where that car have been parked - in that area where the car have been parked.  It was at Thabatha's friend whom they were teachers together at Vulamasango.  It was at Rocklands.  He parked the car in front of the house.

ADV MEMANI: Did anything happen?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: Sergeant Mamome had an extra petrol bomb.  I didn't know where did he manage to make it.  He inserted it inside a tyre and put the tyre in front of the engine's car - under the engine's car so that when we attack with petrol bombs together, they should burn.
	We went outside the gate - we lit our petrol bombs.  We threw the first one and I was the second to attack and then after that we left - went back.

CHAIRPERSON: Do you know when this was?  What year?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: I can't remember well.  I don't want to lie but it is during 1985 upwards.  We started all these events around 1985 but I don't know the exact year, even the day, I can't remember those.
	We went back and give the report with Sergeant Mamome to Lieutenant Shaw about the incident.

ADV DE JAGER: Can we go to the next incident or do you want to add something?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: We may proceed Sir.

ADV MEMANI: The next incident involves the bombing of a house of a teacher.  May you proceed with that, yes.

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: This Bholosha is a lady teacher, she taught at Vulamasango.  She was a member of UDF working together with Mr Thabatha in that UDF.  This particular woman, she was detained in one day.  They were trying to recruit her about the incidents of UDF.  When we got the instructions is because she was refusing to be recruited.  The instructions were from Lieutenant Shaw.  We got these instructions together with Mamome and myself so that we must go and petrol-bomb her house.
	I made petrol bombs - there were four in number.  The very night before we attacked, Mamome arrived at my place.  When I entered into the car, Morakile was there.  We were using a small car - it was fully packed.  It was myself, Mtyala, Litseo and Lesale.

ADV MEMANI: Was Morakile present?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: Yes, he was present - Constable Morakile.  We went to Ms Bholosha's house together with the information that we managed to gather from Sergeant Mamome.  Bholosha was staying there on a rented house.
	When we arrived there I took out my petrol bombs, they were ready.  I had one petrol bomb, the other one was with Morakile and Mtyala together with Litseo.  Lesale and Nzito were left in the car - that's Mamome.  Excuse me, that is Mamome.  Before we left the car Nzito lit all the petrol bombs.  We were running.  I do remember Mtyala opened the -  threw the first attack and Morakile followed and I was the third one, after me it was Litseo.
	After bombing the house we went back to the car, hurried in - we left the area.  He took us back to our places.  The following day we reported about the incident to Lieutenant Shaw.

ADV MEMANI: The next incident is the bombing of the houses of Kuze and Sekope Mallet.  Will you proceed with that application?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: The Kuze that I'm referring to here, if I might explain is the abbreviation of his surname.  This is not his surname, his surname is Khuzela.

ADV MEMANI: Is it Baba Khuzela?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: It is so Sir.
	The instruction given to us by Lieutenant Shaw - it was myself and Mamome.  This guy used to have a file, he was also a student at Vulamasango.  He was the main organiser at the executive at Vulamasango of COSAS.  Shaw instructed us to go and attack their house so that he must stop organising all these activities.
	We went to his place - it was myself, Sergeant Mamome.  We managed to attack with two petrol bombs.

ADV MEMANI: Before you proceed.  Who was with you when you petrol-bombed the house of Baba Khuzela?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: We were two, it was myself and Sergeant Mamome.

ADV MEMANI: And did you report to anyone about the incident?

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: Yes, we did report about the incident to Lieutenant Shaw.

ADV MEMANI: You may proceed.

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: The incident of Sekope Mallet - he was a member of UDF.  He was closely related to activities of churches.  He used to travel a lot to organise in other countries or abroad for the Black people of South Africa.  When he was abroad he was trained to show how Black people are being oppressed in South Africa.  What I'm saying appeared on his files.
	To go and attack his house - he brought missionaries from abroad to South Africa to come and investigate how Black people live in South Africa.  At our offices Lieutenant Shaw said, these people is blackmailing us abroad particularly to the Whites abroad.

BERNARD MAKGABO NGOEPE: Sorry, sorry to interrupt - I think he's saying he's spoiling the good name of South Africa, not blackmailing.

INTERPRETER: That is accepted Sir.

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: So that he must be shut up, Lieutenant Shaw told us that his house should be petrol bombed.  Myself and Sergeant Mamome went to that person's house.  He was staying at the corner house, a four-roomed house in Rocklands.  We had two petrol bombs - we attacked the house with those two petrol bombs.  We left there - I went home.  The next thing we do, we reported to Lieutenant Shaw that we managed to attack the house according to his instructions that we should burn the house of Sekope.

ADV MEMANI: The next incident is contained at page 12 - at 148, paragraph 12.  This is the attack on a parish house.
	May you proceed with that application please.

MOHONAETSE STEPHEN MOTSAMAI: This one, the information came from Botshabelo.  Botshabelo used to have a sub-branch of our office here in Bloemfontein.  The information about Botshabelo was brought by officer Sesedinyyana, that a certain priest from that parish have planned together with the scholars to prevent that Botshabelo shouldn't be under the former Qwa Qwa.
	When we were given instructions to attack there, it was from Lieutenant Shaw and Colonel Coetzee.  We were two, it was myself and Sergeant Mamome.  Before that - before we petrol-bombed that church, Mamome had already written a letter to that priest.  The contents of the letter I didn't know anything about it but I know that had written a letter to him.  Together, myself and him brought the letter to that priest - it was during the night when we went there.
	We make petrol bombs after the writing of the letter, under the instructions of Colonel Coetzee and Lieutenant Shaw so that we must go and petrol-bomb the church because they used to say he was the main influence of scholars so that they must be against the regime of Qwa Qwa.