Amnesty Hearings — Cape Town — 1999-10-26

MR WILLIAMS: I'm also going to argue that you are not making full disclosure to this Committee.  You obviously know that in order to qualify for amnesty you must make a full disclosure, you must tell this Committee why you shot Pro Jack, why you singled him out and shot him, who instructed you to do that?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: In the car it was not my aim to select but my aim was to shoot everyone who was in that car.

MR WILLIAMS: Now if I understand your testimony correct you also said that you didn't know Pro Jack before this incident, is that so?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Yes I didn't know him.

MR WILLIAMS: Had you heard about him?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: No, the only person that I knew was Buyiswa Jack from that family, that was the only person that I knew.

MR WILLIAMS: Because my instructions are that Mr Pro Jack was quite active in the community especially in the KTC area.  He also brought tourist to the KTC area and he helped the KTC community in facilitating peace meetings at times of violence and the KTC community in general knew Mr Pro Jack as a comrade of the ANC.  What do you say to that?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: If I knew Pro Jack I wouldn't be hiding anything here before this Committee.  I was going to reveal anything even if I'd received orders to do that or from the then government or somebody had instructed me to do that, I wouldn't be hiding that now, I was going to reveal that because all I can say that I don't know Pro Jack, I was released from prison in 1990, I didn't stay there all the time and I had to go to Transkei sometimes and come back again up until 1991, therefore I did not get the opportunity to know him.

MR WILLIAMS: Mr Yekwani, just the last issue I want to deal with very briefly is you say that you didn't come to the TRC voluntarily but you were approached by people from the TRC, is that correct?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Yes that is correct.

MR WILLIAMS: You mention Mr Killian's name and can you just explain to the Committee how it came about that your amnesty application was eventually lodged?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: I made a statement to Mark Killian concerning this incident of Pro Jack and I made mention of the fact that I wanted to be forgiven for that and I even wanted people to know as to what happened on that particular day.

MR WILLIAMS: Were you told that you don't need to make a statement but you can first consult with an attorney before you made a statement or what?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: No, I was never told.

MR WILLIAMS: Did you feel pressurised into making a statement?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Yes as an investigator I was pressurised to give him the statement and he had a proof that he was coming from the Truth Commission therefore I decided that I have nothing to hide, I just have to tell him everything.

MR WILLIAMS: Mr Chairperson, can I just ascertain from my clients whether there's any other field that I must cover?  	Thank you Mr Chairperson, there's just two issues that I want to quickly deal with.
	Mr Yekwani, is it correct that at the time when Mr Jack was buried and afterwards that you were posted as a guard to their house, you guarded there the family and the property?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Yes that is correct.

MR WILLIAMS: How did you feel about that?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: As I knew that I'm the one that has this R4 and I knew that even the enemy would get a chance to go and attack the people in prayer and I decided to be there and try and protect the people.

MR WILLIAMS: And then my last question is, is it correct that ANC was not consulted about the attack on Mr Jack before it happened and neither was it informed about it afterwards except the fact that you mention that you spoke to Mr Langa and Mr Dan Nkwatcho about it?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Yes that is correct, the ANC was never told about the incident.

MR WILLIAMS: Okay.  Thanks Mr Chairperson.
NO FURTHER QUESTIONS BY MR WILLIAMS

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you Mr Williams.  Mr Jamie, have you got any questions?

MR JAMIE: I do, Mr Chairperson.  May I proceed?

CHAIRPERSON: Yes.

MR JAMIE: Thank you.  Mr Yekwani, as far as you're concerned at whose - for whose interests were you attacking as you say you thought the police that evening?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: What I didn't like was for the police to kill the people and doing nothing about that and I just wanted to satisfy myself and I wanted the people to gain confidence from us as SDU members.

MR JAMIE: Now before that evening, for how long had you been an SDU member?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: I think it was plus minus eight years.

MR JAMIE: And during that time you've testified you did not receive any training before this evening, the incident that evening?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Yes that is correct.  No, during this, in 1990 I acquired training.

MR JAMIE: You did receive training in 1990?  From who?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: From MK.

MR JAMIE: But I thought your evidence earlier was that you had not received training before that incident that evening?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: During this incident of Pro Jack, are you talking about that?  I had acquired training at that time, just before this.  This incident took place in 1991 and I got my training in 1990.

CHAIRPERSON: I think what he said Mr Jamie was that after his release from prison he then underwent six weeks of military training in Butterworth in the Transkei but before he went to prison he never received training.

MR JAMIE: I'm sorry, I must have misunderstood that.  Now how many missions and operations had you been on sir while you were an SDU member?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: The one that I can talk about, the one that I was arrested for but I was never arrested for burning the schools.

MR JAMIE: Sorry, you were never arrested for?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: I was never arrested for burning the schools, I was only arrested for burning the house belonging to police.

MR JAMIE: So that was the one incident that you were arrested for?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Yes.

MR JAMIE: And then we know of another incident where you as you've testified you killed Pro Jack.  Now how many other missions were there that you went on?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Those that I know about, are you talking from 1990?

MR JAMIE: I'm talking about when you were an SDU member.  Did you regularly go on these missions where you attempted to police as you testified?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Those are the only missions that I know about.

MR JAMIE: So the only missions you ever went on where you attempted to hit police was the one time that you burnt the policeman's house and then the Pro Jack incident, is that your testimony?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: I did not count that as a mission, the one the Pro Jack's incident, I can say that was a mistake.  Those that I can talk about was when hitting the police, shooting at the police and burning the house of the policeman and the incident in Khayelitsha.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes I don't know if you can, but the question is how many of these type of incidents that you are referring to with attacks on the police you were engaged in as a member of the SDU, was this a frequent thing or just a few isolated incidents or what, just give us an idea?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: I would do it frequently if I want to and if my magazine is full of ammunition and I knew what to do just before it could be confiscated therefore I would go on a mission.

CHAIRPERSON: Yes Mr Jamie?

MR JAMIE: You'd been on these missions before?

XOLA TEMBINKOSI YEKWANI: Yes that is correct.

MR JAMIE: Now the particular motivation for the mission that evening which resulted in Pro Jack's death, you made mention of something concerning Mr Toyise.  What was that again?  Can you explain that?