DECISION
Applicant is SAINT MKHULULI MANYAMALALA, an adult male of Zola North, Soweto, Gauteng, who was arraigned and convicted in the Witwatersrand Local Division of the then Supreme Court under case no. 32/95 of the following counts :
1. Murder;
2. Attempted murder;
3. Robbery with aggravating circumstances;
4. Unlawful possession of two firearms viz. a .38 revolver and a 9mm pistol;
5. Unlawful possession of .38 ammunition.
Applicant is presently serving a long term of imprisonment pursuant to his said conviction which arose from an incident on the 3rd of February 1993 at Germiston, Gauteng, as more fully set out below.
Applicant has applied for amnesty in terms of Section 18 of the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act, No. 34 of 1995 ("the Act") in respect of the convictions set out above.
Various steps taken by the Committee staff to locate Ruth Jennifer Barker, the remaining victim of the incident in question, proved fruitless and the matter consequently proceeded in her absence and on an unopposed basis.
In his application form Applicant sets out the fact, confirmed in his testimony, that at the relevant time he was a member of the African National Congress ("ANC") and of a Self Defence Unit ("SDU"), under the auspices of the ANC.
In an affidavit submitted in support of the application in terms of the requirements of the Committee, Applicant sets out details of various firearms unlawfully in the possession of the SDU. This was not explicitly dealt with in the amnesty application form. When Applicant's attention was drawn to this fact during the course of the hearing he indicated that he also wishes to apply
for amnesty in respect of the unlawful possession of the said firearm. Pursuant to a formal application launched and motivated at the hearing, the amnesty application was amended to include the latter offence.
The salient aspects of Applicant's testimony were briefly as follows. During 1992 he was recruited into the SDU by a member of Umkhonto we Sizwe ("MK") and the ANC, one Senamela, who gave the 12 members of the SDU a crash-course in military warfare. Applicant was appointed as commander of the SDU and had to report to Senamela who, to the best of Applicant's knowledge, in turn reported to those in authority over him linked to the ANC. At the time the Soweto area was plagued by widespread political conflict and violence. There were regular attacks launched against members of the community by inhabitants of various hostels. These attacks were linked to the Inkatha Freedom Party ("IFP"). The principal function of the SDU was to defend the community against such attacks. Since Zola North where Applicant resided was not in immediate danger of attacks, the SDU was deployed in the area of the Meadowlands, Jabulani and Moletsane hostels. In one of the battles with attackers, the SDU lost a number of firearms which left them vulnerable and ineffectual. It became urgent to replace the lost arms. Applicant reported to Senamela who agreed that Applicant should attempt to obtain weapons from a contact in Thokoza, one Gaddafi. Applicant and some of the SDU members travelled to Thokoza on 3 February 1993 in order to investigate the possibility of obtaining weapons. Since their vehicle was in a bad condition and unsuitable to transport the weapons which were immediately available, Applicant and two others proceeded to look for a suitable vehicle for the purpose of transporting the weapons to Meadowlands. They came across a suitable vehicle parked near the Gosforth Park Golf Club. The vehicle had two occupants. They approached the vehicle and Applicant ordered the male person in the driver's seat to hand over the vehicle. The person appeared to be agreeable to do so, but suddenly produced a firearm and tried to shoot Applicant, who responded and fired at this person, who was killed. The other occupant, a woman, was also struck and wounded. Applicant took the vehicle which was then used to transport the firearms obtained in Thokoza. He also took the firearm of the deceased. Applicant's order to the SDU members to burn out the robbed vehicle was not executed. Applicant was in fact misled into believing that this was actually done. The discovery of the vehicle by the police eventually led to Applicant's arrest.
The abovesaid robbery conviction related to the deceased's firearm and vehicle as well as a handbag of the other occupant, Ruth Jennifer Barker. Although there is no indication that Applicant was actually aware of the handbag, we accept that it formed part of the items robbed.
In our view there can be no doubt that the incidents in question were associated with a political objective and resulted from the activities on the SDU. There is no indication that Applicant acted for personal gain or that he enjoyed any material benefits from the offences in question. It is also clear that Applicant harboured no ill-will or spite towards the victims of the abovesaid attack.
We are accordingly satisfied that the application complies with the requirements of Section 20 of the Act and amnesty is
GRANTED: to Applicant in respect of
1. the murder of Willem Stephanus Froneman on the 3rd of February 1993 at or near Gosforth Street, Germiston, Gauteng;
2. the attempted murder of Ruth Jennifer Barker on the date and at the place referred to in paragraph 1 above;
3. the robbery, with aggravating circumstances, of a Toyota Corolla vehicle, a 9mm pistol and a handbag on the date and at the place referred to in paragraph 1 above;
4. the unlawful possession of a .38 revolver and a 9mm pistol on the date and at the place referred to in paragraph 1 above;
5. the unlawful possession of .38 ammunition on the date and at the place referred to in paragraph 1 above;
6. the unlawful possession of various firearms including AK47 assault rifles, shotguns, pistols and revolvers and ammunitions for such firearms during or about the period 1992 - 1993 at Gauteng in regard to the activities of the Self Defence Unit under Applicant's command.
We are of the opinion that Ruth Jennifer Barker is a victim in relation to the attack on the 3rd of February 1993 at or near Gosforth Street, Germiston, Gauteng and the matter is accordingly referred to the Committee on Reparation and Rehabilitation for its consideration in terms of Section 26 of the Act.
DATED at JOHANNESBURG this 19th day of OCTOBER 1998.
DENZIL POTGIETER, A.J.
ADV. L. GCABASHE
MR. J.B. SIBANYONI
