hrvtrans HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, SUBMISSIONS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 1997-04-09 GRAHAMSTOWN 3 NOWATASE R. KOBESE https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/hearing.php?id=55125&t=&tab=hearings https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/originals/hrvtrans/gtown/kobese.htm NOWATASE REGINA KOBESE: (sworn states) REVD XUNDU Thank you. I will lead you with questions so that you can tell us your story and to clarify certain matters. Are you here to talk about your husband? MS KOBESE Yes. REVD XUNDU Was he working for the Municipality? MS KOBESE No, he wasn't working. He was not employed. REVD XUNDU His name is Labourer Notiti Steven? MS KOBESE He is Doyisele Steven. REVD XUNDU Please tell us your story? MS KOBESE Steven left me on Sunday, he told me that he was visiting Mr Fani. He did not come back until Monday. There was a young man who came, who was sent by the Fani family to inform us that he was run over by a car and he was also axed. REVD XUNDU Who is Fani? MS KOBESE Mr Fani is staying with us in the township, but he is in Parliament now. REVD XUNDU You said that he was run over by a casper? MS KOBESE Yes, a van. REVD XUNDU Is it a police van? MS KOBESE No, it was a van who was driven by Amagoloda, the people who were known as Amagoloda. REVD XUNDU Who are these people? MS KOBESE They were the people who were following Nohashe. REVD XUNDU Who was Nohashe? MS KOBESE Nohashe was the Mayor at Fort Beaufort at the time. REVD XUNDU You said that Nohashe had followers? MS KOBESE Yes. REVD XUNDU These people were assaulting you? MS KOBESE Yes. REVD XUNDU Who was Kobese? MS KOBESE Kobese was on Fani's side. REVD XUNDU You mean that he was an activist? MS KOBESE Yes. REVD XUNDU After being run over by this van and they also assaulted him with axes, did he go to a hospital? MS KOBESE Yes, the police came and they took him to hospital. When we arrived there, we were told to come in the next morning. They then told us to go back home because he was feeling cold. We then visited him the next morning, he was better that day. He told us that he was feeling better, but he did not notice these people who ran him over, he said that there were many people, they left him there dead. REVD XUNDU They left him for dead? He was discharged from hospital? MS KOBESE Yes. REVD XUNDU He came back home? MS KOBESE Yes, he came back home. REVD XUNDU Did he work? MS KOBESE No, he did not work, he was not well, he was not feeling well because he had a black spot in the stomach. REVD XUNDU When did he die? MS KOBESE He died in 1990. REVD XUNDU He died after six years? MS KOBESE Yes. REVD XUNDU After that incident? MS KOBESE Yes, after that incident. REVD XUNDU Was there any case opened? MS KOBESE No, there was no case opened, but the police just wanted to know where he was coming from when he was assaulted. REVD XUNDU Ms Kobese, by coming to the Commission, what are your expectations? MS KOBESE I would like the Commission to help me with my children, because they are not at school. REVD XUNDU How many are they? MS KOBESE They are three. One of them is still doing standard 7 and the other one is doing standard 9. REVD XUNDU You would like the Commission to help you to support your children? MS KOBESE Yes, and also my younger child. REVD XUNDU Is there anything else you want to add? MS KOBESE No, there is nothing. REVD XUNDU Mr Chairperson, let me hand over to you. CHAIRMAN Ntisiki Sandi. ADV SANDI The people who were referred to as Amagoloda, who gave them this name? The people called them Amagoloda or what? MS KOBESE Yes, people called them Amagoloda, they referred to him as Amagoloda. ADV SANDI What did they mean when they were saying they were Amagoloda? MS KOBESE Because they were assaulting people, we were members of the ANC, they were Amagoloda, they were known as Amagoloda in the location. ADV SANDI Were there any other people who died because of the conflict between Amagoloda and the people? MS KOBESE Yes, and some of them were injured. ADV SANDI Thank you Ma'am. CHAIRMAN Mrs Nowatase, you mentioned Matinka's name who was working for the South African Police. What is the connection in this case? MS KOBESE No, I don't know him. CHAIRMAN Ms Kobese, as he recovered after this, did he notice any of these people? MS KOBESE He said that he did not notice any of these people because it was at night. CHAIRMAN Why did he think the perpetrators were Amagoloda? MS KOBESE He saw a brown van coming towards him. CHAIRMAN You mean that Amagoloda were using brown vans? MS KOBESE Yes. CHAIRMAN The police vans? MS KOBESE No, the Toyota. CHAIRMAN He saw a van? MS KOBESE Yes, he noticed that they were driving this van. CHAIRMAN Thank you Mr Kobese, we will investigate this matter. We have been given this responsibility to investigate such matters. Our Investigative Unit will try and investigate, but I would like to point out that it would be very difficult to investigate this but if we can get assistance from the community, if people can come forward, who are going to be witnesses, for this case, or if there are people who applied for amnesty, who would help us, it would be easy because your husband did not see anyone, he did not even see the number plate of the van, but we will try to investigate this matter. If we succeed we will tell you, but we will try even if we can fail, thank you Mrs Kobese.