MR LEWIN: While the witness is settling down I would just like to acknowledge the presence today of some of our community leaders. If they could please identify themselves. Mrs Seroke, I do not mean the Ms Seroke who is here. Mrs Seroke is here, we are pleased. Welcome again Mrs Seroke, thank you. I see that Mrs Yates is here again today. Mrs Yates, Dot Yates. We are also very pleased that Obert and Connie Papela are here again today. I would like to welcome them and he was here, although I do not seem him here at the moment, but I hope he comes back again, Linda Twala. Linda is here. Great. Thank you very much. We are very pleased to welcome all the newcomers to this hearing. It is particularly good to see so many of the old folks coming in from Alexandra. Thank you for being here.
CHAIRPERSON: I want to welcome them too. I would like to welcome the old folk. I use to come here from time to time. It was difficult, it was hard. Some of you almost assaulted me in the stadium. I ran as fast as my feet could carry me. I had to run and escape, but I am very glad especially to you women, that you have made it here today. That when we praise our youth, we are not going to achieve what we have achieved today if the mothers were not there for support and we thank you. Especially that we do not allow you to give a round of applause, but please let us give a round of
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applause to the women and the youth. Thank you.
MR LEWIN: Thank you for that. Ms Maphanga Mkhuanazi, could I ask you please to stand and take the oath.
MAPHANGA MKHUANAZI: (Duly sworn in, states).
MR LEWIN: Thank you and you will be led, and if I could introduce you to Joyce Seroke. Thank you.
MS SEROKE: Good morning Kate. I would like to know the person who is accompanying you.
MS MKHUANAZI: This is my brother-in-law.
MS SEROKE: We would like to welcome both of you and also to thank you for having come before the Commission to tell your story. Kate, you are going to relate the story that happened in your sisters night vigil, Jane Ramagola and also on the night vigil that were made after she died. Can you continue?
MS MKHUANAZI: My brother-in-law's surname is Ramagola. It was in the first week of March 1991. My sister Jane Ramagola was installing a gate in her yard. Her next door neighbour, Agnes Nagema, told her that she is wasting her time because if the Inkatha start, they will start at their place. It happened that people came to the house, they were holding firearms. They asked them to stand on the line and one of them said these people are not complete here and truly they were not all there because my sister was bathing and also the elder daughter was not around. When my sister came out of the bathroom and entered the house, they started shooting and she was hit by two bullets.
She was taken to a clinic. While she was in the clinic they transferred her to Tembisa Hospital. She stayed there from the day she was admitted and she was never treated. When we arrived in the hospital we found that her bed was
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full of blood and she was also oozing saliva from her mouth. We tried to ask for a transfer so that they can take her to Karaphong Hospital. They transferred her the second day. The bullet which entered on her chin, they could not extract it and it happened to move back to her neck and it killed her.
Later we went to the ANC offices. We took some members of the ANC together with us. We went to the hospital and we discovered that she was dead. We took her to a mortuary.
MS SEROKE: Okay, Kate, take your time and drink some water until you are ready to continue. Can you continue?
MS MKHUANAZI: Yes, I can. When we arrived in hospital we find that she was covered with blood on her face. We took her to the undertaker nearby and we started preparing for the funeral. On the 26th of March there was a curfew in the location and because of this people were not allowed to travel or walk around after nine o' clock. If you were found in the streets after nine you were arrested. So people came to the night vigil and also some friends came. We decided not to have a night vigil because it was late and it was about nine o' clock. People decided to stay because they were afraid to walk in the streets after nine. So they sat in the tent.
There were some young boys outside and they saw a young woman in the company of a young man wearing a cloth on her head. They started running away because they were thinking those were Inkatha members coming to attack them. People who were in the tent started running into the house. The lady who has just finished her testimony now tried to call the police. The police came and they told us we do not have to worry because they would protect us. We told them that
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we are afraid because my sister was shot by Inkatha people so we needed to be protected. They promised us that they will be riding around turning on their sirens and people are afraid to come and attack us. We asked them to stand at the gate and protect us. They said we must not worry, they will be riding up and down the street. They passed the first time and the second time and the siren was ringing. We started preparing tea for the people at the night vigil.
The Xhosa children started singing their songs, freedom songs. Since it was a night vigil they were singing Church songs, but after twelve they started singing freedom songs. As the police were passing they could hear them singing these freedom songs. After a few minutes, it was at about three in the morning, a crowd of people came towards our place. As our home was opposite to the clinic, they were coming from the clinic towards our place. So the young children who were singing ran into the house. One of them decided to go back home, but unfortunately when he see this crowd of people coming, he ran and came back to us to tell us there are some people coming towards our place. My brother ran outside behind the houses. By that time the people had already arrived and they knocked at the door asking us to open. We refused to open and they insisted that if we do not open, they are going to break the door.
MS SEROKE: Have some water and relax. We know that it is a painful story which opens the previous wounds.
MS MKHUANAZI: They told us that we must open the door and if we do not open it they are going to break it open. We opened the door and they entered. They were clad in police uniform and they were also wearing some balaclavas. When they entered the house they started shooting. We did not
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bring the body and we arranged that the body should be brought the next day. They entered the house and shot at everybody inside. They shot my sister's children and all the people in the house. We were taken to hospital. At the time we were in the hospital, some died on the way to hospital. Some managed to arrive at hospitals and some of my sister's sons friends died during the incident.
We made a statement to the police. We were able to explain that we saw them and even the manner in which they were dressed. They took us to hospital. We were treated and after that we were taken to identify the perpetrators and we managed to identify them on a parade. They also found the guns that were used and also the bullets that were used. Cartridges were also take for ballistic proof. What surprises me the most is that these people were found not guilty. They kill us without a reason and I would like to ask the Commission to investigate and find these people. Let them come out and tell us exactly why they shot us. Even on the day on which they were released we were not told, we just saw that they were released on papers. The case ended like that.
We were so badly injured and we would also be happy if those who died can be honoured by erecting tombstones on their graves. Thank you.
MS SEROKE: As you have said in relation to your sister who was shot at home and we will also go further into the incident where you were having a night vigil. You said as she was busy working at the gate, a next door neighbour said you are wasting your time because people are coming to attack this place. Was this person warning or was she knowing that these people were coming?
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MS MKHUANAZI: I think she knew that people were coming to our place.
MS SEROKE: You also stated in your statement that they told Wellington, your sister's husband, that there is someone they were looking for who was not on the kill. Were they thinking that he was in the house?
MS MKHUANAZI: They were saying that the people in the house are not complete, there were some who were not in the house.
MS SEROKE: Were they looking for the whole family and they could realise that someone was not there?
MS MKHUANAZI: Yes, that is true.
MS SEROKE: Who was not there?
MS MKHUANAZI: My sister and her elder daughter.
MS SEROKE: You said your sister did not get good treatment in hospital. You say the post mortem showed that the bullets entered through the chin.
MS MKHUANAZI: I will say that the bullet did not come out of the body, but when they operated they found the bullet had moved from the chin up to the back neck, back of the neck.
MS SEROKE: Did you find a death certificate explaining as to what caused the death?
MS MKHUANAZI: Yes, they did give us a death certificate.
MS SEROKE: Can you give us the death certificate?
MS MKHUANAZI: We cannot go back to the place because we were chased out of the house and the Inkatha people occupied the house and they are still staying there.
MS SEROKE: Let us continue on the night vigil. Mapangafani is your brother?
MS MKHUANAZI: Yes.
MS SEROKE: Is he the one who asked the police to come to
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protect you?
MS MKHUANAZI: I have forgotten this young man who called. He talked to my brother and he was asking for protection.
MS SEROKE: Michael called.
MS MKHUANAZI: Yes, that is true.
MS SEROKE: You said people, COSAS members came to the night vigil.
MS MKHUANAZI: I would say those were the colleagues of my sister's younger sons friends. There was a hunger strike at that time so they were in the offices, but they came to the night vigil in the evening.
MS SEROKE: You said while they were at the night vigil they saw two people and they started running back. Why did they think these people were working together with the attackers?
MS MKHUANAZI: We were not yet attacked, but they were afraid when they saw those people coming towards our house.
MS SEROKE: You also stated that the people who came to the night vigil were wearing police uniform. Is that true?
MS MKHUANAZI: Yes, that is true. They were not police, they were Inkatha people, but they were wearing police uniforms.
MS SEROKE: Can you give us a figure of your relatives who died on that day?
MS MKHUANAZI: Ten relatives died. Three of them were friends.
MS SEROKE: Yourself personally, how were you injured?
MS MKHUANAZI: I was shot on my arm.
MS SEROKE: How long did you stay in hospital?
MS MKHUANAZI: For about two months.
MS SEROKE: What are you doing at the moment?
MS MKHUANAZI: I am working.
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MS SEROKE: You said you are no longer staying at your previous home. Where are you staying?
MS MKHUANAZI: I am staying in one of these flats.
MS SEROKE: Jane's husband and the children, where are they staying?
MS MKHUANAZI: They have a shack somewhere at TB Settlement.
MS SEROKE: You said the house is still occupied by Inkatha people?
MS MKHUANAZI: Yes, that is true.
MS SEROKE: Did you ever try to get them out of the house?
MS MKHUANAZI: I will say that most people were staying at Beirut, were chased out of the place and they are afraid to go back to stay there.
MS SEROKE: Thank you. I will take you back to the Chairperson.
CHAIRPERSON: Yasmin Sooka.
MS SOOKA: Mama, I just want to ask you a few questions. In your statement you mention that the accused were not found guilty and were, in fact, acquitted, but you also say that the Judge promised to have this case in camera and that that did not happen. Can you tell us a little bit about that please?
MS MKHUANAZI: I will say that we went to court and we told them that we do not want the people, the perpetrators to see us. The Judge promised that the case, the trial would be conducted in camera so that they do not see us, but they did not do that. It was conducted in an open court and one day, on Friday, one of them called me, we were in town. He was inside a car. He sent one young gentlemen to come and call me. I went there because someone was calling me. He asked me, do you know me? I could see that it was him, but I
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said, no, I do not know you. He asked me whether I am not afraid. I said, no, I am not afraid. He said to me this issue of yours, going to court and lying about us, it is not good. He is asking who told you that. He said you know the whole story.
MS SOOKA: Were you in court during the judgement? What did the Judge say? Why did he not find them guilty? Was there not enough evidence?
MS MKHUANAZI: A lot of evidence was rendered. The guns were found which were used. He acquitted the fifth one and the four of them were convicted. However, later we discovered all of them were acquitted. I also have the documents here and they said the police were lying in court. I do not know why the police were telling lies in court because they were not asked any questions any court. They just kept quiet and the Lawyer was conducting the case.
MS SOOKA: Thank you Mama.
CHAIRPERSON: I wish we have the words to comfort you for the loss that you suffered. You lost ten relatives and three friends which was usually called black on black violence. As now it comes out that there were some people behind this violence. Now the truth is coming out that there were people who wanted the black people to kill each other. As we have witnessed one of the cases in this incident. We will try and investigate as to why this happened and also in relation to the case we will try and find out as to why the police did not protect you when you asked them to protect you. They left you open for attack. We will also try to investigate as to how your trial was conducted and also why they promised you to hold the trial in camera and later they did not. However, these things
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will never bring back the deceased. However, the truth will come out and heal our wounds so that when the time comes for us to reconcile, we can reconcile with open hands and open hearts. We will also ask as to how does it happen that people who can be chased from their homes and not allowed or forcible removed, you are not allowed to go back and stay there.
As we know very well that people in Alexandra live peacefully. Also like to find out if possible can they go back to that peaceful situation or peaceful environment where people are reconciled and happy.
MS MKHUANAZI: There is one thing I have forgotten. My brother ran to call the police. He arrived at the police station. They told him that they do not have the cars. However, when the shooting started it took about ten minutes for them to arrive. They should have heard the sounds of an AK47 because it was very loud. I wonder if they did not hear the sound of the gun.
CHAIRPERSON: Thank you Mama.
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