Human Rights Violation Hearings — Uitenhage — 1996-08-27

MS MAYA: Thank you Chairperson.  Our next witness is Kwanele Moses Bucwa.

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: (sworn states)

MS MAYA: I greet you Kwanele, looking at our statement here before me, I see that you were also injured on the 21 March, as a result of the shooting, and we find that you were in the forefront of this procession and you were riding a bicycle and when the shooting started, you were the first to be shot.  Now could you briefly explain how old were you at the time and what did you actually see?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I was 17 years old in 1985 and I was riding in front of the crowd of people who were chanting songs and there were two people at the back of them.  There was one policemen who lifted me up who's name was Lieutenant Fouche who I got to know later on.

MS MAYA: You have mentioned some people and a certain Fouche who gave some instructions that there should be shooting, what actually did you see?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: They were standing and showing up on top of the hippo and the first shooting was the cause of my injury.

MS MAYA: So you were nearer and you saw him clearly?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes, he was the one sitting nearer to me.

MS MAYA: Where did this bullet hit you?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: It hit me on the left hand side of my head.
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MS MAYA: What was the extent of the injury?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I was injured such that one of my legs doesn't function properly.

MS MAYA: After they had hit you, what else can you recall? Can you briefly tell your story.

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: After I had been shot I fell down and I dislocated my arm and I could hear the shooting going on.  After they had shot, they came back to me and kicked me trying to find out whether I was still alive and I pretended to be dead and they went on to other people.  I lay on my back after they had kicked me.  They were again checking on other people as to whether they were still alive and they were still shooting other people to death and they went on doing this and then there was a police van that came and then later on ambulances came.

MS MAYA: You were also taken to hospital.  How long were you there?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I was in provincial for four years, and I was transferred to Livingstone Hospital and I was sent to the Church Street together with others who were discharged, and there were other people in Church Street who had been with us earlier and we were locked in.

MS MAYA: After the shooting you were arrested, is that so?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes, like that.

MS MAYA: How long were you arrested.

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I was kept there for four days.

MS MAYA: And then after you were released, what happened to you?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: After my release from jail, the policemen were after me and then I went to Blinkpan where I was there for about a month and 3 weeks and they were investigating on
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this case and they would come back and give a report to me and they would tell that in their statement they said that I died.

MS MAYA: When did you come back from Blinkpan?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I went back after I had to appear in court and no one was found guilty so I decided to go back home.

MS MAYA: Did you also get an opportunity to go and give evidence there in court?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes I was the last one.

MS MAYA: Is there any evidence you can recall that was given about you by the police?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes there is.

MS MAYA: What was it?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Some police say I died but, Lieutenant Fouche said I came five minutes after the shooting and I left the bicycle and I ran away to some nearby houses.  That is the evidence that he gave.

MS MAYA: In other words, they were trying to say they were not responsible for your shooting?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes they say I was not there at the time of the shooting, instead I left my bicycle and ran away.

MS MAYA: Where is your bicycle now?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I never got my bicycle after that.

MS MAYA: Now you say you were 17 years old, what were you doing, were you a student?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: No, I was working.

MS MAYA: After you were injured, were you able to work again?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: When I went back to my work, I was told that I had been dismissed from work.

MS MAYA: And then, after you were unemployed did you get
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another opportunity to organise another job for yourself?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes, because I still work now at Sammat.

MS MAYA: The shooting on your head, how had it affected your health, are there any changes you observed?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes, this affected me because they could not take this bullet out because they said I would be paralysed and now this bullet is still here in my head and my leg does not function properly.

MS MAYA: Now you mean this bullet is still within your body?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes, it's like that.

MS MAYA: I'm sure by your appearance here you have a wish or a request to this Commission, what is it?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I wish I could get treatment.  I wish a hall could be built there in the location because most people had to go out of school, even my brother was beaten up by the police because they want information about my whereabouts.

MS MAYA: So if there could be a hall that could be erected in commemoration of this incident, which on the other hand could be of help to the people.  Is that the only request you have Mr Bucwa?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: No, that is not all.

MS MAYA: Go on, talk.

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I would like to say even the compensation was only R17 000 and it was insufficient and yet I have wishes to send my children to school and some other times I can't work because of this leg, now I am not able to provide for my children.

MS MAYA: How many children do you have?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: I have got 2 children.  One 3 year old, and one 6 year old.
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MS MAYA: Is that all you have to say Mr Bucwa?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes

MS MAYA: I am now going to hand over to one of my colleagues.

PANEL MEMBER: Firstly I would like to thank Fundile, the first speaker because I noticed that he had to be given a Grandpa and this has been very strenuous for him to come and give this evidence, I can see you are deeply hurt and it is painful to me and I cannot express my sympathy to you and even some other times we get angered by these things that happen to our people so thank you for coming here.
 Kwanele, I am very happy to see you, I've read a lot about you from the journals about the little boy on a bicycle and the writers of those articles some other times don't even have a picture of this place Uitenhage and some others write about this incident when they come across scholars from South Africa, even the victims here, there is some writing about them.  What is surprising mostly is that in all this excitement about this Uitenhage case as it is referred to people tend to forget that there are actual people behind this case who are seated here today and therefore in all this excitement in the articles and the books written you still sitting here to get to know about the truth about what actually happened to you and it is our wish that we should also get the actual truth.  
 Therefore Kwanele, I would like to ask you at the time you were riding this bicycle, and someone said you said you should come to one side is there any policeman who said come this way?

KWANELE MOSES BUCWA: Yes the policeman who had raised his hand indicated to me that I should ride in between the peoples.
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PANEL MEMBER: So as you were riding the bicycle, you were riding because someone had indicated to you?