: DECISION
The applicant is presently serving eighteen (18) years' imprisonment, having been convicted and sentenced at the Durban and Coast Local Division of the High Court on 27 July 1992 for the following offences:-
1. The murder of Samuel Sipho Hlongwane;
2. The murder of Ngqongqoshe Jerome Khuzwayo;
3. The attempted murder of Christopher Ngcobo;
4. The attempted murder of Zeblon Dube, and
5. Robbery with aggravating circumstances, as defined in Section 1 of Act 51 of 1977.
The application arises out of an incident which occurred at Ndwendwe on the 23rd of March 1990 when the applicant, in concert with Mduduzi Desmond Mbhele; Lucky James Hlengwa; Sibusiso Patrick Thembe and Dumisani Ernest Dlamini robbed a pension team, escorted by police, which was to pay out pensions in the area. According to the records an amount of R290 000 was to be paid out. Both Hlongwane and Khuzwayo as well as Ngcobo were members of the KwaZulu Police Force (KZP) of which the applicant was also a member. Dube was waiting in the queue to collect his pension when he was shot. The two (2) police died instantly after they were shot by the applicant and his co-perpetrators. The applicant and his group stole four firearms from the police and a steel trunk which was used to transport the money but had no money at that stage. Pensioners must have been very lucky not to have been killed in the shoot-out.
The applicant claims that he was a supporter of the ANC and that he wanted to rob the police of arms so that he could give them to the ANC supporters who were being attacked by the IFP at KwaMashu, his area of residence. He says at the time there was a violent political conflict between supporters of the ANC and the IFP.
It is not necessary to deal with the evidence and contradictions in this matter in any detail. Suffice it to say that there is no indication that the applicant was a member or supporter of the ANC or any political organisation for that matter. Considering the evidence as a whole, it is highly improbable that this was a politically motivated action on his part or any one of those who participated in the robbery with him. The conclusion is inescapable that they were acting for personal gain.
Consequently, the application is REFUSED. The victims of the action cannot, in the circumstances, be referred to the Committee on Reparation and Rehabilitation as they were not victims of a politically motivated attack as contemplated in the Act.
Signed at Cape Town on this the 7th day of December 1999.
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JUDGE D. POTGIETER ADV N. SANDI
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ADV F. BOSMAN (SC)
ADDENDUM
VENUE: Durban Christian Centre
DATE: 18 November 1999
PANEL : D. Potgieter AJ; Adv. F. Bosman; Adv N. Sandi
EVIDENCE LEADER: Mr Z. Mapoma
LEGAL REP. APPLICANT: Mr Ngubane
LEGAL REP. VICTIMS: Mr Z. Mapoma
