DECISION
Mr Thamsanqa David Jackson was charged with and convicted of the murder of a policeman, Oupa Petrus Dithabe. The offence was committed at Masilo Location in Ventersdorp on the 23rd of April 1993. The applicant was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment.
The Committee has been furnished with the following documents:
1. Application for amnesty;
2. Judgment on sentence of the Trial Court;
3. Records from the Department of Correctional Services.
The applicant gave evidence that on the 22nd of April 1992, he and other members of Masilo Location burnt a motor vehicle belonging to a white person who was allegedly selling milk adulterated with water to that community.
Shortly thereafter the police arrived and the deceased was amongst a group of policemen who arrived at the scene of the burnt motor vehicle. The deceased then accused the applicant of being at the forefront of such activities in the area and threatened that a week would not go by before he would have him killed.
On the 23rd of April 1992, the applicant who was from his girlfriend's home, met the deceased next to a shibeen which was close to a community hall. The deceased initially ordered the applicant to stop at gunpoint. The applicant then enquired: "Why do you want me to stop, what do you want from me when you point the gun to me like that?" The deceased uttered unacceptable words to the applicant and further ordered the applicant to accompany the deceased to Paul's place. When the applicant and the deceased were next to Paul's place, the deceased suddenly slapped the applicant. The applicant got angry and grabbed the deceased by the arm and a scuffle broke out.
The applicant and the deceased got involved in a struggle with the applicant wrestling for the deceased's gun. The applicant ultimately succeeded in obtaining the deceased's gun and shot the deceased three times. When asked to explain why the killing of a policeman would seek to further any political objective, the applicant said "It was not my intention at all to kill him, because I was trying to protect myself."
When further questioned about what the deceased was doing at the time he was thrice shot; "I shot the deceased three times (after) he slapped me and I got frightened because I could see he had a gun on him and I saw on many times what a gun can do to people, especially when it was in the hands of people like the police. I realised that if I could try to run away he was going to kill me and that is why I got emotional and that's how I found myself struggling with him until the gun got into my hands."
We do not propose to deal at all with the evidence let at the trial as Mr Jackson admitted to having lied before that tribunal to protect himself. We accordingly accept the evidence led before us by the applicant.
It is crystal clear from the evidence tendered that the applicant allegedly killed the deceased in self defense after the deceased slapped him on the face. It is equally clear that the applicant's offence was not associated with a political objective.
We are accordingly satisfied that the act committed by the applicant does not meet the requirements of Section 29(2) and (3) of the Act at all. The application for
AMNESTY IS ACCORDINGLY REFUSED: .
(Signed)
H. MALL J
A. WILSON J
B. NGOEPE J
ADV C. DE JAGER SC
MRS S. KHAMPEPE
Dated at Cape Town on this the 6th day of December 1996.
