REVD FINCA: Makhuluphala is the next witness. Thembisa Tifi will be the next followed by Phumla Wokona.
XOLISWA MAKHULUPHALA: (sworn states)
REVD XUNDU: Thank you.
T TIFI: (sworn states)
REVD XUNDU: Thank you.
PHUMLA WOKONA: (sworn states)
REVD XUNDU: Thank you. I've sworn them in Mr Chairman, thank you.
REVD FINCA: We welcome you to this Commission and we ask that you should relax whilst you give your evidence to this Commission. Ms Maya is going to lead you.
MS MAYA: I thank you Chairperson. Ms Makhuluphala and Thembisa I want you to be clear about the fact that the evidence we have here is from you, but because Thembisa is here, she is going to talk on her own, is that the case? Thembisa, are you going to give evidence?
T TIFI: Yes.
MS MAYA: Mrs Makhuluphala, do you have any additional information?
MS MAKHULUPHALA: Yes, there may be those that he could have left out.
MS MAYA: Thembisa, according to the evidence here in front of us, you were shot on the 11th of August in 1985, shot by the soldiers and you sustain serious injuries. How old were
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
2 T TIFI
you at the time?
T TIFI: I can't remember how old I was at the time.
MS MAYA: When were you born?
T TIFI: I was born in 1976.
MS MAYA: What were you doing at the time you were shot and where were you?
T TIFI: At the time I was shot, I was coming from school and we were the last group to go out of school. There were three of us. It was my brother and someone else from our neighbourhood and myself. And as we were walking we scattered to different directions and somewhere I just saw a casper that was parked.
MS MAYA: Just a minute - could you come closer to the microphone.
T TIFI: And after crossing the Douglas and was near my home, there was a casper parked somewhere and I - that did not disturb me because I was dressed in my school uniform and I had a hope that nothing would happen to me. But as soon as I crossed the line, I heard a sound and I ran away - passed my home because I was shocked.
It is after some time that I noticed that I was bleeding from the face and here on front, what I did was - I didn't know where to go and I could feel that I was getting weak.
And after some time I met some comrades who asked where was my home. I don't know how I directed them and I lost consciousness and to regain it at my home. Then one of the neighbours took me to hospital and I was feeling very weak.
On the way we met several people who were injured and there were no taxi's so we had to walk all the way and in the forrest we couldn't go further because the farmers were
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
3 T TIFI
not allowing people to walk there.
And I lost consciousness once more and I regained my consciousness when I was in hospital where the nurses attended to me.
They washed the blood from my body and they said there was no serious injury, but I was swollen. My face and arms were swollen and they discharged me.
After some time my body was still swollen, my face was swollen and was turning greenish. I didn't say anything to my parents, but I couldn't eat and this went on for quite some time.
And the swelling subsided, but there was still this green mark on my face.
MS MAYA: Could we go back a little bit. At the time - what time was it when they shot you?
T TIFI: I went out of school at - after lunch which was at about one o'clock.
MS MAYA: Now you say, because there was no transport at the time, people carried you and you walked all the way to hospital. What time did you get to the hospital?
T TIFI: I just can't remember what time we reached hospital.
MS MAYA: How long were you in hospital?
T TIFI: I was there for some time and I didn't get treatment, they just washed me and discharged me.
MS MAYA: Could you go ... (intervention)
T TIFI: I was not in hospital for a long time, they just washed me and put me on bandages.
MS MAYA: They did not admit you? What hospital was that?
T TIFI: No, it was the Frere hospital.
MS MAYA: Did they take out the bullets from your body?
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
4 T TIFI
T TIFI: Yes, they did, but some of them remained within my body and they could not take them out. But, and I was under the impression that they had taken all the bullets out, but I noticed in 1987 that I still had some bullets in my body.
MS MAYA: How did you notice that?
T TIFI: I saw them, I still feel some of the bullets within my body. And I told the nurses who used to come to the school and I would frequently go to the hospital and some of them were extracted, but I still feel that I still have some bullets within my body.
And I have gone to hospital several times and I have told the Doctors that I still have the bullets, but they told me - they ask me why I have this bullets for 10 years within my body.
I have explained to them that this bullets are getting into the tissues the longer they are within the body.
MS MAYA: What hospital is this?
T TIFI: This is the Frere hospital.
MS MAYA: At the time you were shot, you were 11 years old. What standard were you?
T TIFI: I was in standard 3.
MS MAYA: Did you go back to school to further your studies?
T TIFI: Yes, I did though I had stayed for 2 years out of school.
MS MAYA: What is your highest qualification?
T TIFI: My highest educational qualification is standard 10.
MS MAYA: How has this shooting affected your health?
T TIFI: I would say this shooting is still causing problems to me - physically because several times if I have
to lift some heavy objects, I feel a pain in my arms and
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
5 T TIFI
some other times they get swollen and when it is cold, I feel some pain on my head.
MS MAYA: Do you perhaps have any wish or requests to forward to this Commission?
T TIFI: Yes, I have. I would like this Commission to make means that I should consult Doctors who are going to be able to extract bullets that are still within my body.
MS MAYA: Is that all you have to say?
T TIFI: Yes.
MS MAYA: Ms Makhuluphala, do you perhaps have any additional information?
MS MAKHULUPHALA: No, I don't have any. No, I've got nothing more to say.
MS MAYA: We thank you. We are now going to hand you over to the Chairperson for in case there is anyone who would like to pose a question to you.
REVD FINCA: Over to you June Crichton.
JUNE CRICHTON: Can you hear me Thembisa? Can you hear me? I have two questions for you. In your statement you say that you were at your front door when you were shot. Did you see anybody when that happened, did you see a vehicle or did you see any person that you actually saw shooting?
T TIFI: As I said earlier, after I had gotten to the yard, I looked and saw a casper that was parked in front of our house and thereafter I heard some gunshots.
JUNE CRICHTON: Thank you, that's the one question, the other question is, just to ask you and perhaps your mother, whether you still at Frere hospital where they have said that they should remove those bullets, is it the same file that you've been using ever since that shooting incident?
Is it the same file, is it a thick file?
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
6 T TIFI
T TIFI: It isn't the same, but I explained to them when this incident occurred and they looked for the old file and found it, but they asked me to open a new file.
JUNE CRICHTON: Thank you.
REVD XUNDU: Do you work?
T TIFI: Yes, I am employed.
REVD XUNDU: Where do you work?
T TIFI: I am a security.
REVD XUNDU: Do you think that this incident and your injury could have been the cause for you to leave school?
T TIFI: I wouldn't say that, but there was no one to pay for my education, but I had intentions to look for work and pay for my education.
I tried to do that, but I couldn't get employed because they would send me to get a medical examination after the shooting and then I would get a bad report and they would state that I was not having good health.
REVD XUNDU: Did you ever get any assistance in the form of a grant, disability grant?
T TIFI: No, but my parents went to some place ... (tape ends) tell us about, only about meetings.
MS MAY: I would like Phumla to come closer to the mike. I greet you Phumla. You say in August 1985, you were here in Duncan Village where you were staying and you were shot at that time. What happened to you?
P WOKONA: It was late, around seven and I heard people singing outside. I also went there, I joined them.
While we were still singing near the road, there were no soldiers, we couldn't see any soldiers. They were just passing through.
When we saw them, we heard shots, firing to us and we
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
7 P WOKONA
all ran to houses. Unfortunately I was shot at that time. I was shot in my thigh and the bullet exited through the buttocks.
I cried and I saw one comrade next to me and he tried to take me home, but I couldn't lift my leg at that time. He took me home and at home people came to see me because they heard that someone was shot.
There was no transport for me to go to the hospital at that time. Someone went to look for a car for me and I was taken to the hospital.
They saw that the bullet stayed in my buttocks, it didn't stay in my thigh. I was treated in the hospital, but they discharged me because the hospital was full.
I came back home and they told me that I should go every day in the morning for dressings, because my thigh was swollen at that time.
I couldn't even go to the toilet at that time, because my buttocks was so swollen. I continued with the treatment, I used to go to the hospital for dressings. That took me almost a month.
Because I was suffering and there was no transport for me to go to the hospital, they asked me whether is there any clinic nearby and I told them that there is no clinic nearby, because they were all burnt down.
They gave me dressings so that I could dress myself at home. I also went for check-ups at the hospital.
And three months passed and I continued with my treatment. I saw, when I saw that I was able to walk I stopped the treatment. While I was going to the treatment at the hospital, when we met these SADF, when they see the bandage in you, they wanted to shoot you again or to beat
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
8 P WOKONA
you or to kick you.
They just wanted to do that. It is worse if you had the bandage on.
MS MAYA: Do you remember the date in August when you were shot?
P WOKONA: No, I don't remember the date, but it was the first week.
MS MAYA: Do you remember the day?
P WOKONA: No, I don't remember the day, I forgot everything.
MS MAYA: How old were you at this time?
P WOKONA: I was 18 years old.
MS MAYA: Were you a student?
P WOKONA: We were on strike at school, we were not going to school at that time.
MS MAYA: Did you go back to school after you were shot?
P WOKONA: Yes, I did. I did go to school and I passed my matric.
MS MAYA: How did this affect your health?
P WOKONA: My leg is so painful and I can't stand up for a long time.
MS MAYA: Are you working?
P WOKONA: No, I'm unemployed.
MS MAYA: Does your unemployed situation have something to do with your shooting?
P WOKONA: No, but I don't think that I'll be able to work in a factory, because I don't, I can't stand for a long time. My leg gets tired very easily. I can't work in a factory.
MS MAYA: Do you have any other, do you have a request in front of this Commission?
P WOKONA: Yes, I do. My request is that I want to continue with my education. Since I can't stand up for a long time
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
9 P WOKONA
I want to continue with my education and I am unable to know the damage which happened to me. I just want to be treated more medically.
MS MAYA: How far did you go with your education?
P WOKONA: I passed matric.
MS MAYA: Do you have any other thing to say, to add to what you have already said?
P WOKONA: No, I think that is all.
MS MAYA: Thank you, Phumla, I will give this opportunity to the Chairman so that if there are any questions to be asked, they can ask you - thank you.
REVD FINCA: Mcebisi?
REVD XUNDU: I would like to ask whether you get a pension due to this - did you apply for any pension?
P WOKONA: No, I didn't.
REVD FINCA: Ntsikelelo Sandi?
MR SANDI: Phumla, did you ever go to any lawyers for advice?
P WOKONA: No, I didn't because at home, we were suffering, there was only one person who was working.
MR SANDI: Thank you Phumla. Thank you Chairperson.
REVD FINCA: Thembisa and Phumla and Thembisa's mother, we would like to thank you for the evidence you gave in front of the Commission.
We know that the youth took part and that helped South Africa. The youth took part in the struggle and you came in front of this Commission while you are still young and your life has been destroyed.
The Commission can see more specially in Thembisa that he was only 11 years old when the incident happened.
The police and the soldiers then they said that they were giving security, they said that they were protecting
DUNCAN VILLAGE HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE
10
people, so that they cannot be injured and in the process of doing that they destroyed a life of an 11 year old boy.
We noted what you've put in front of this Commission and we salute you for you courage. We salute you for your determination.
What you've said, your requests, the Commission will try to put them in front of the President so that he can answer. We thank you for all your evidence and we would like you to go to your seats. Thank you.
