REVD FINCA: We would like to call Mqondeni Wilmont Bottoman.
INTERPRETER: The Speaker's microphone is not on.
MQONDENI WILMONT BOTTOMAN: (sworn states)
INTERPRETER: The Speaker's microphone is not on.
REVD XUNDU: ... in your car?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, I was coming from work.
REVD XUNDU: Where were you working at this time?
MR BOTTOMAN: I was a rep in the Company. I was working in T.W. Becketts at that time.
REVD XUNDU: On that day, you were travelling with your car. You were not at work at that time?
MR BOTTOMAN: I was from work, it was a Monday. I was on my way from work from Ntanzani.
REVD XUNDU: What was the time at that time?
MR BOTTOMAN: It was around four o'clock in the afternoon.
REVD XUNDU: You met this crowd and what did they say to you?
MR BOTTOMAN: I met young children and it was at the time of the unrests. They asked me for petrol and I refused to give them.
REVD XUNDU: Did they say what they wanted to do with this petrol?
MR BOTTOMAN: No, they didn't say but I could see what they wanted it for because they were burning all over at that
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time.
REVD XUNDU: In your life was there anyone who didn't like you concerning the political unrests?
MR BOTTOMAN: I knew that people were busy with political activities at that time.
REVD XUNDU: What did they say to you when you refused to give them the petrol?
MR BOTTOMAN: They didn't give me any story, they were in a hurry, they just needed the petrol and I told them I didn't have petrol.
REVD XUNDU: What did they say to you?
MR BOTTOMAN: They didn't say anything at that time, but they just - they told me things when they were burning my house.
REVD XUNDU: When did this happen?
MR BOTTOMAN: They asked me for petrol on the 12th and in the early morning at three o'clock they burnt my house.
REVD XUNDU: Did you recognise any of them?
MR BOTTOMAN: No, it was at night, it was dark so I didn't recognise any of them.
REVD XUNDU: When they were asking you for petrol, did you recognise any of them?
MR BOTTOMAN: No, I didn't.
REVD XUNDU: Did you see anyone you recognised?
MR BOTTOMAN: No, because I don't know many of the young people so I didn't even recognise their voices.
REVD XUNDU: On this day, what did they do at your home? What damage did they do? On this day, what damage did they do at your home?
MR BOTTOMAN: They burnt my house, they burnt my cars, everything, they burnt everything.
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REVD XUNDU: Did you get any compensation from the Insurance Companies?
MR BOTTOMAN: No. Can you please repeat the question.REVD XUNDU: On all of these damages, did you get any compensation?
MR BOTTOMAN: There was only one car which was insured. I did get some compensation, although it took a long time.
REVD XUNDU: You say as a result of that, your wife was so shocked that she had to be treated at a hospital?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes.
REVD XUNDU: What really happened to your wife? Was it really a shock?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, it was a shock and she didn't even want to come here but I forced her to come here. She is still suffering from the shock due to that incident.
REVD XUNDU: How many children do you have?
MR BOTTOMAN: We have three children.
REVD XUNDU: Were they injured due to this incident?
MR BOTTOMAN: It was a pain to them, but we tried to comfort them, because what happened happened.
REVD XUNDU: Were they treated any badly in the township?
MR BOTTOMAN: No, because we went on that day, we left at the township on that day.
REVD XUNDU: You decided to leave?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes.
REVD XUNDU: Do you have any problems with your health due to this?
MR BOTTOMAN: I couldn't say this affected me, but it is just on my mind. Up until now I just want to know what happened. I didn't accept this.
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REVD XUNDU: Did you continue working for this firm?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes.
REVD XUNDU: This Committee does not guarantee anything, but it asks the requests from people and it gives back the report to the President and the President meet with other Committees in order to have answers, but we would like to ask you if you have a request to this Commission you can say your request.
MR BOTTOMAN: I don't like to plea, but if the Commission has something to give me I will accept that.
REVD XUNDU: Can you please explain that.
MR BOTTOMAN: I say that if the Commission can help me to regain what I've lost because of the struggle, I would appreciate that.
REVD XUNDU: Was your house insured?
MR BOTTOMAN: The Council said that the houses were insured, but I tried to extend my house and I lost that because I didn't receive money to, because my house was extended, I didn't receive enough money. The Council just gave me what it thought to be enough.
REVD XUNDU: The approximate value is R150 000-00.?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, because I counted my furniture, my house and my cars and that's why I said it is plus or minus R150 000-00.
REVD XUNDU: I would like to give this opportunity to the Chairman, thank you.
REVD FINCA: Thank you. Are there any questions? I would like to give this opportunity to Ntsikelelo Sandi.
MR SANDI: Mr Bottoman, on that day when these boys asked petrol from you in the street from your car, did you go back home? Did you tell your family what happened to you?
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MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, I did.
MR SANDI: Who did you tell at home? Did you tell your wife?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, I told my wife.
MR SANDI: What did she say? What happened when you were away?
MR BOTTOMAN: She said that they started during the day when she was at home, because she off duty at that time. Two boys came, two or three boys came to my house to ask for petrol. One of them said that he can open the car and take the petrol out and then my wife told them that they can't because the cars had a safe and one of them stopped and one wanted to open the car.
MR SANDI: Did they get petrol from this cars?
MR BOTTOMAN: No.
MR SANDI: You said that on the pre-hearing briefing yesterday, there was a neighbour who came to you. What did he say to you?
MR BOTTOMAN: My neighbour since he was shot, he came to me and said that we are in the least of these people wanted to burn our houses.
MR SANDI: Did he tell you the reasons for this?
MR BOTTOMAN: No, he didn't. I just told him that in this township my house isn't going to be burnt.
MR SANDI: You said, Mr Bottoman, on that night how did you sleep after hearing that you were going to be burnt?
MR BOTTOMAN: Since they said that we didn't sleep well. We went to bed with our clothes, because we were waiting for anything that could happen.
MR SANDI: You say you slept with your clothes?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, I slept with my suit and a jacket on top of the suit and I slept with those clothes.
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MR SANDI: Mr Bottoman, you said you brought this matter to
the political organisations?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, I did.
MR SANDI: Did you get any answers from the political organisations at that time?
MR BOTTOMAN: I didn't get any straight answers, but they said they will look at this matter.
MR SANDI: On that day your house was burnt, did you call the police or the fire brigade to help?
MR BOTTOMAN: When these boys ran away, I took the telephone and I phoned the police and I was told that there were no police and then I was just told that they will send the SADF to come and look at what was happening.
MR SANDI: Did the soldiers come?
MR BOTTOMAN: No, they didn't come while the house was burning, but they came afterwards.
MR SANDI: What did they say when they came? I will wait for you Mr Bottoman until you are ready to continue because I want this to be clear. Can you continue Mr Bottoman? In short, without talking about details when the soldiers arrived at your home, they wanted to know the owner of the house which was burning?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes.
MR SANDI: They also wanted to know where is the owner working?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes.
MR SANDI: Do you have anything to say concerning the soldiers? What did they say and how did they handle this matter?
MR BOTTOMAN: What I saw is that they didn't care. They were just asking - they were asking while they were on their DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
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car, they didn't get out of the car. That showed me that they didn't care about this. That is why I dropped this, I didn't go to the police station, but we just went to the hospital on the next day.
MR SANDI: Thank you, Mr Bottoman.
REVD FINCA: Mr Bottoman, I would like to ask this question. According to your views, what was the reason for the people to burn your house?
MR BOTTOMAN: Apart from what was said on that day, people say that why should I have a big house and many cars, while others don't, that is what was, that is what people were saying around the township.
REVD FINCA: Did this happen only to you or were there any other people around Duncan Village which this happened to them?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, other Councillors, their houses were also burnt and there was no connection between me and them.
REVD FINCA: As I was listening while you were answering the questions from Revd Xundu, was there any connection between these boys who were asking petrol from you and the burning of your house?
MR BOTTOMAN: Yes, I think so, because I didn't give them petrol and after that there were stories. Because I said I needed this to be investigated, I told them to go to ask from the people in the township of what happened and the answer was that while I was asking to one of them who were there, while I was asking the political organisations, one of them said that I should go and apologise to the comrades - those I didn't give the petrol and I said that I was not going to do that and he said to me a car can hit a person while he is on a pavement, so my case is like that. They
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used that language to me, but I don't know where did he take this from.
MR SANDI: Were there any structures here in Duncan Village which were leading the struggle at that time?
MR BOTTOMAN: I wouldn't say so because they were not allowed at that time. So I wouldn't say there were structures or not.
MR SANDI: Thank you.
REVD FINCA: Thank you, Mr Bottoman and Mrs Bottoman for coming here in front of this Commission. You would think that this is not important, but it is important to the Truth Commission for us to listen to the stories which you brought forward.
They give us a full picture and this wouldn't be clear if people didn't come forward. We were given this opportunity as a Commission to draw a picture, a clear picture of what was happening at that time which the Parliament gave us to investigate. We were also given this task to give a full picture of the bad and good things which happened during the struggle period.
I think your story shows clearly the activities people took in the struggle, some are involved because in a way which they were not supposed to be involved.
And the aim of the Act promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation is to say to this nation, this is what has happened to this nation. These are the things that were done to each other and for this nation to say "never again must these things ever happen."
Thank you for coming here in front of this Commission to give us the picture you gave us and the request you gave to this Commission, we will look into your request and Revd
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Xundu have said, we cannot guarantee that we will respond, but the President will see what he can do. I thank you, both of you.
