hrvtrans HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, SUBMISSIONS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 1996-06-26 PORT ELIZABETH 1 VUYO W. MFUTWANA https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/hearing.php?id=55321&t=&tab=hearings https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/originals/hrvtrans/hrvpe2/mfutwana.htm DR BORAINE: Mr Mfutwana, we ask him to please come forward. Good afternoon Mr Mfutwana, please put the earphones so that you and I can hear each other. Is it coming through all right? MR MFUTWANA Yes. DR BORAINE All right. Mr Mfutwana, you had a very long wait. Can you hear my voice and you can hear the translation? MR MFUTWANA Yes, yes I can. DR BORAINE Excellent. Let me say again then a very warm word of welcome to you. You've had a very long wait. I hope that you feel as we do that it was the right thing to give Mrs Mtimhulu an opportunity and those who were with her, but it has meant a very long wait for you. We are grateful to you for your patience and that you've come here today. What you are going to tell us, the story that you are going to tell us is very different from what we have been listening to. The circumstances, the actors, the people involved, but it is just as painful. Just as painful for you and for your family because you will tell us about your brother who was murdered. I am going to ask you to stand to take the oath before I hand over to my colleague. Will you please stand. SANDILE WELLINGTON MFUTWANA (sworn states) PORT ELIZABETH HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE 2 SW MFUTWANA DR BORAINE Thank you very much. Please be seated. As you know we always ask one of our Commissioners or committee members to lead and to assist the person who is going to tell their story. On this occasion Ms Maya is going to lead you and I am going to hand over to you, but you must know that you are amongst friends and that it is your story that you are going to tell. Thank you. MS MAYA Thank you Dr Boraine. Mr Mfutwana, I would like to confirm your names that you are Wellington Mfutwana, for coming here. You want to tell the story of your brother's murder who is Wilberforce Vuyo Mfutwana on the 2nd of July 1985, here in PE. I would like to request before you start with your statement tell us about Vuyo, who was Vuyo, which organisation was he a member of and as far as you know, what could have been the reason for his murder. MR MFUTWANA Vuyo Wilberforce Mfutwana is my elder brother. We used to live together at Magalile at that time. There was a conflict between UDF and AZAPO here in PE. There was fighting, there was a continuous, unending fight. AZAPO was being led by Rev Kwazendile Macqweni who was a resident of New Brighton. MS MAYA And your brother, which organisation did he belong to? MR MFUTWANA My brother was a member of the UDF. MS MAYA Can you tell us very briefly what was happening here in the township especially with regard to the conflict you've mentioned between the UDF and AZAPO? MR MFUTWANA Can you repeat the question for me? MS MAYA My question is could you please tell us which group, organisation was your brother a member of and so far PORT ELIZABETH HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE 3 SW MFUTWANA as you know, what was happening in the township, especially with regard to the conflict between UDF and AZAPO? MR MFUTWANA My brother was a UDF member in the Magalian area. What was happening here, houses were being washed over in the UDF areas because occasionally AZAPO would go and take AZAPO homes and UDF leaders like Bnqoyi and Banqashi. MS MAYA According to your statement can you come now to this particular date? MR MFUTWANA On the 2nd of July 1985, we were at my house. It was in the morning and we were coming from watching the houses. It was myself, my brother, my elder brother and Roniqelwa Dwaba. Whilst we were sitting there, we were in the kitchen, whilst we were chatting, I was busy writing some work related reports and we saw people hitting a shack behind our hut. My home is at 5780 and the house behind is 575, we saw these people wearing balaclava's. As they were hitting the shack, the intentions were very clear. It was that if someone was inside, they should come outside. Others were wearing AZAPO T-shirts and we could see that the enemy had come. And there were only three of us and we didn't know - we were also in danger because they could see us. The others went out and ran away and I waited and just as I was going out, my brother went out with Ronnie with whom we were sitting. I was the last to go out. As I was going out, I met one chap who had been hacked, he was bleeding. That time the AZAPO guys were chasing the group with my brother. He PORT ELIZABETH HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE 4 SW MFUTWANA ran into another house and before he entered the house, (indistinct) was in the yard, they got him and they hacked him to death. I ran to another direction. When I came he was just doing his last gasp. MS MAYA How many approximately? MR MFUTWANA Approximately, these people were about 20, 25 to 30. They had hidden their faces with balaclava's. MS MAYA All of them? MR MFUTWANA No, not all of them. Some of them didn't have balaclava's, but I can't, I couldn't identify them. MS MAYA Were there other people who witnessed this? MR MFUTWANA When this happened I don't know if there were people who witnessed this at the back of me, but whilst he was being hacked, there were some people who saw it because very quickly people started milling around. Even when he was dead, there were many people around who had come out. MS MAYA Does that mean that there is no one who came out even afterwards who came forward to say he or she identified someone? MR MFUTWANA No, up to today no one has ever come forward to say he or she saw the people. MS MAYA Can you just go back a little bit. There were some with AZAPO T-shirts. How did you see? MR MFUTWANA They were written AZAPO name. MS MAYA At the time of your brother being hacked, did he die at that spot? MR MFUTWANA Yes, he died on that spot in front of that house to which he was running. MS MAYA Do you remember his age at the time? MR MFUTWANA Not exactly, but he was born in 1954 and this PORT ELIZABETH HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE 5 SW MFUTWANA was 1985. MS MAYA Was he still at school or had he finished school? MR MFUTWANA He was already working, he was not schooling. MS MAYA Did he have a family, wife and children? MR MFUTWANA No, he didn't have a wife but he did have children. MS MAYA Where are they now? MR MFUTWANA The children are staying with my mother. MS MAYA How many are they? MR MFUTWANA There are two of them. MS MAYA Their ages, do you have an idea of that? MR MFUTWANA One was born in 1981 and the other was born in 1983. MS MAYA Are they at school? MR MFUTWANA Yes, they are at school. MS MAYA Can you tell us more about their education. What standards are they doing? MR MFUTWANA The one is doing standard 7 at Zwakeli High, the younger one is at Hendrinzi and doing standard 5. MS MAYA Does your mother work? MR MFUTWANA No, she doesn't work, she is on old age pension. MS MAYA In other words they are being supported by your mother's old age pension? MR MFUTWANA Yes, yes that is so. MS MAYA Their mother, do you have any idea about them? MR MFUTWANA Their mother handed them over to my family as she was getting married. I don't know what happened to her. MS MAYA Is there something else in your statement that you would like to add? PORT ELIZABETH HEARING TRC/EASTERN CAPE 6 SW MFUTWANA MR MFUTWANA At the moment, I can't think of anything except maybe later. Not anything now, there is nothing now. MS MAYA Thank you Mr Mfutwana, I am going to give you back to the Chairperson. Maybe one of my colleagues might have questions. Thank you Dr Boraine. DR BORAINE Just one question. Mr Mfutwana, you mentioned that perhaps one or two days after your brother was killed, and we are very distressed to hear about the way he was butchered, you said that you had reported it to the Louis Le Grange police station. You reported his death, is that right? MR MFUTWANA That is so. DR BORAINE Was there ever an inquest or a court case or any enquiry surrounding the circumstances of your brother's death? MR MFUTWANA No, since I reported when he - I never heard anything. I never heard of any arrests, nothing, up to today. DR BORAINE Did you ever get a death certificate? MR MFUTWANA Yes, I did. DR BORAINE You can't remember the person to whom you made the report, but it was the Louis Le Grange police station? MR MFUTWANA No, I can't remember that, no. DR BORAINE Thank you very much for your help. REVD TUTU Any other question. Thank you very much for coming and your patience which you've explained knowing that you would have to come to this lengthy proceedings. Thank you very much.