Human Rights Violation Hearings — Worcester — 1996-06-26

CASE NO: CT/00234

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: After three months, two months we were released.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: Could you please explain to us the reasons and the causes why you were arrested?  Please give us a clear picture of what happened in 1960.

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: When we came back from this demonstration to the townships, to the place where we were staying because of the atmosphere of the march the police were arriving there and they caught some of us and put us in the vans.  They assaulted and beat us severely in jail.  We were beaten over and over again.  I was beaten in my ear.  They were beating us with a cane and after a while they simply let us out, they didn't make us appear in any court and there were no charges.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: Which month was it in 1960.

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: I'm not sure which month it was.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: Is it the only one because you gave us the other dates and months.

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: I think this is the only one, you can forget ...

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: Do  you still remember the month in 1960?

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: I remember the day that we were there, it was on a Saturday.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: Was it in March?

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: I don't remember well whether it was in March or not.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: Okay lets go on.  From there you were severely assaulted in the van and can you show us exactly where you were injured?

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: I was injured on my ear, my right ear.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: I can see there is a scar but what else happened in your ear other than the scar which you now have?

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: There was nothing ever wrong with my ears at that time.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: Could you please explain to me after you were severely beaten and released from prison, what happened in 1961 and 1962.

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: In 1961 there was nothing going on but in 1962 in May, people were arrested and detained.  Every week people were being arrested and being assaulted in May, June, July, September and October and all these people were never brought to trial.  We felt that we were going to be finished off by this kind of treatment by the police.  In the end we felt that we wanted the police to release the people who had been detained.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: We would like you to explain to us, as you are saying each and every time you were coming from work you would get arrested, why were you arrested, what was the reason for your arrest every day?

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: They said there was an atmosphere that was leading to chaos, which could lead to anything and they were in a hurry to arrest us.  They just took people and they wanted people to explain what was going on exactly with this atmosphere of unrest.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: As you are saying people were electrocuted and caned, can you please try to explain to us who these people were severely treated by the electric wires and the mountain.

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: When you had an electric shock, there's a place there which I had never known before and people were taken there and tortured with electric shocks and afterwards they were put in the cells at the police station.

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: This place known as Bo-Paarl that you are telling us about, were there houses there where people were taken to?

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: XHOSA -

MS GOBODO-MADIKIZELA: As you were going to march was it to protest and ask for the release of those who were arrested?

MZIKHAYA MKHABILE: We as men went out to try and tell the people that we wanted, there were many of us who went along to the chief, some of us went to the police station and I was amongst the group that went to the police station.  On our way there before we actually reached the police station we came across a van which came in between the marchers and said we should stop.  
 Somebody called Bloem Makileni was taken, was shot and somebody else was actually shot by someone called David Mfeni, he was David Mfeni, he was shot.  We were put in the cells and when we came to the police station there were many police standing outside the police station.  Nobody actually said what they were doing or asked what we wanted, we just stood there.  
 One of us came out and said I'll talk to the police.  This man's name was Maigi.  They simply just began shooting and they shot him in cold blood.  When we came there other people ran when this happened and we said why are we being killed, what is this about?  They chased us and again there were other policemen that came to beat people.  There was a chaotic scene of attack, fear and confusion.  
 We wanted to get out of the town altogether.  The place was surrounded by police and we were arrested.  We were taken to the police station and kept there.  There were very many of us.  After that we were taken to Roeland Street Prison in Cape Town.  At this place in Roeland Street we stayed for some time and then again sent to Worcester.  At Worcester we were kept in the very old jail and there again we were severely beaten.  
 When we got to Worcester the investigators came and said that they had come from Bloemfontein.  These investigators questioned us and interrogated us continually about what we were doing.  One was White and one was Black.  I was also asked to make a statement.  When I went in the offices where they were they said you will speak, you will tell us and they punched me with their fists and I was handcuffed while they shouted at me that I must talk but   I never spoke, I refused.  They said you will speak and I didn't reply.
 I was also shackled at my feet and had the handcuffs on my wrists.  I was tied between two chairs, the sticks were put between my knees and I was pushed and pushed and I was also pushed against the wall and my head was hit against the wall.  During this time I was punched continually.  I was suspended by my handcuffs which were connected to these sticks and I was being swung backwards and forwards and my head was hitting the wall.  
 I will show you how this was done.  There was a stick put there, I was between two stools between my legs and I was pushed.  I was beaten for a very long time there and I couldn't do anything, I could not speak and I couldn't do anything I was just in terrible pain after that.  Water kept coming out of my ears and as I turned my head water would come out of the other ear.  I was shackled in front with my hands, I couldn't get up and move around.  They came and they lifted me up again and they said, right now you're going to talk but I still was not prepared to talk, I never replied.
 They then took the handcuffs off me and the shackles off my feet.  I was covered with blood and my face was very swollen.  They left and then they returned again and said, right are you going to talk now?  I remained silent.  They came with a sack and they put this sack over my head and then they tied the sack on with a rope around my head.
 Some were at the other end of the wall, some were pulling the rope and they said leave it, so those on the other side left the rope and I was struck down and lost consciousness.  I woke up in another cell and my ears were bleeding heavily.  There was ten of us and they let us out in the early hours of the morning.  As I was looking around even those who were around me were severely injured.  
 We were taken into a place for water and told that we must drink.  I was feeling very thirsty so I drank and I tried to wash my ears.  We were then taken back to the cells.  Those who were severely injured today were taken to us who were beaten before.  That is where the injuries to my ears started, my deafness started there.  It was in December 1962 here in Worcester.
 Time went on and they came to fetch us, there were twenty two of us and we were taken to Paarl.  When we arrived in Paarl we were taken to the court and we were given lawyers but we refused them.  They said the proceedings won't go on.