Amnesty Hearings — Cape Town — 2000-10-06

MS COLERIDGE: Can I just explain the relevance of this, Chairperson.  It was just that this was found in a raid, so to speak, Chairperson, and it related to PAC activities and therefore they just included it into the bundle, Chairperson.  That's how I see it.

MR LAX: Ms Coleridge, what happened to the annexures to this affidavit which would have been the list of PAC activities for that area?  I saw there was one from the police, but that was a separate police document.  As I understand it, these people when they raided Lesotho, confiscated numerous PAC and APLA reports of their various operations, of which this may have been one of them, and that's why I thought this affidavit was there, but unfortunately the annexure wasn't available.

MS COLERIDGE: That's right, the annexure is not included and I can clarify and see whether we have a copy of the annexures, but it was not included in this documentation.  I don't know if the Analyst didn't receive a copy.  It is also part of the docket that was in this incident.

MR LAX: I can tell you that in other matters we've asked for that annexure as well, I doubt that you'll find it.  I understand it's sitting somewhere in the Senior Director of Public Prosecutions office.

MS COLERIDGE: Thank you, I'm indebted to Mr Lax regarding this.

MR MBANDAZAYO: In fact, I can confirm what has been said by the Member of the Committee, Mr Lax, that it's difficult to get those documents from Pretoria, they are totally refusing, totally.  We don't know the reason.  We have asked them many a time, I've had meetings and I was promised personally, because we want it to assist us in these applications, but they are totally refusing to hand over even copies of those documents.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you, Mr Mbandazayo.

MR MBANDAZAYO: Now Chairperson, just for the benefit of the victims, we mentioned Nonxuba and we explained, then the name of Polite Sipho Xuma.  Sipho Xuma, for the benefit of the victims, was a Deputy Director of Operations in APLA, so he was a senior member and he was also a Director of Special Operations.  He is the person who was Head of Logistics, he was distributing arms and he had mentioned in many operations, even St James, the arms which were brought there were brought by him and also in Heidelberg Tavern he was mentioned, almost in all.  He is the man who ordered the Eikenhof incident, who gave the order, the Eikenhof incident.  So he has been mentioned in many operations.  So he is the man.  And he was the man who was distributing arms all over the country.  So he was known by many as Polite.  There are many names which he was called, but his real names are Sipho Bulelani Xuma, from eNgcobo, Transkei, originally.  He integrated in the South African Defence Force and later resigned.  He's presently studying at the University of Fort Hare.  He's a student now at the University of Fort Hare.
	Now can you then, Mr Henge, take us through, for the benefit of people, all of us were not there, your preparations up to the stage when you attacked this bus.  But just before that, in your application you mentioned a person by the name of Mandla, can you tell the Committee about Mandla.

THEMBINKOSI HENGE: Actually, Sichumiso told me that he will send someone to come and assist me in this operation, then he sent Mandla.  When Mandla arrived, I showed him the operational area, then we attacked the bus, then the following day he returned to Transkei.  So the thing about Mandla is that in reality I don't know his name, his real name, because for security reasons he used his Chimorenga names.  Like my name was Chuluka actually.

MR MBANDAZAYO: Chairperson, unfortunately I don't know which of these Mandlas - as Mr Lax would know, there's one who subsequently died and I could not, when I was trying to investigate which one was his real name, whether it was the same one.  But Mr Xuma, when I contacted him he said he was not sure whether it was the Mandla who was the Administrator, but he doubted if it was him who was sent him to come and assist.  But he's not sure about that, because unfortunately these records we wanted from Pretoria are these which - everything was documented there.  They know who was involved in which operation, who was sent there and their real names.  So it's difficult now after some years for them to be able to say really it was so and so who went there, except some of them they can remember.

MR LAX: Sorry, Mr Mbandazayo, where does Nkanyezi fit into this picture?

MR MBANDAZAYO: I was coming to ask him exactly, but I was going to try and ask first - you know there's ...(indistinct) who are mentioned here, can you tell the Committee about Valtengua?  Who is Valtengua?

THEMBINKOSI HENGE: Valtengua Nkanyezi was one of the PAC members at our local branch.  So his involvement with the Translux bus incident, I don't know, because he was never involved, so I don't know why, if it's him that said that he was involved, because I first heard about that in 1996 when I was questioned by the police, that Valtengua is saying that me and him and Dawn, we attacked the Translux bus.  And to put the matter straight, I don't see any reason why he himself claimed to be involved in that operation while he was not involved.

MR MBANDAZAYO: Now do you know this Dawn?

THEMBINKOSI HENGE: Yes, I know Dawn.  Dawn was staying with Chi Chi and he was working at a local contractor there in Beaufort West, then he left.  Only later I found out that he is with the National Defence Force.

MR MBANDAZAYO: I understand Chairperson, he's presently in Bloemfontein, in the South African National Defence Force.  I contacted him and I asked him why he did not apply, he said look he has never been involved in this incident, he would gladly have applied if he was involved, but unfortunately he does not know how his name came into the picture in this matter.  Otherwise he was never involved, according to him.
	Now Mr Henge, I don't want to take time, you're still going to be questioned by the Members.  I would like just - you know I asked you can you take us through when you attacked the bus, let me take it from there.  When you attacked the bus what was your intention, when you were shooting at that bus?  What were you aiming at, were you aiming at the people inside the bus?  Were you aiming at the tyres?  Were you aiming at the driver?  What was your intention exactly?  Can you take us through and tell us exactly what it was and why the spot you chose where you decided to ambush the bus.