hrvtrans HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, SUBMISSIONS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 1996-09-26 KLERKSDORP 4 SIBIYA JEREMIAH BELAWENI 01523 https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/hearing.php?id=55390&t=&tab=hearings https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/originals/hrvtrans/klerks/belaweni.htm DR RANDERA First of all, is Sibiya your surname? MR BELAWENI That is my name, Sir. DR RANDERA Good afternoon to you and welcome. Mr Sibiya, I am going to be helping you as you tell your story. Before we get to that, can you first of all introduce the person who has come with you? MR BELAWENI That is my cousin, his name is Somsi Nogo. DR RANDERA Mr Sibiya, would you please stand to take the oath? SIBIYA JEREMIAH BELAWENI (Duly sworn, states). DR RANDERA Thank you, Mr Sibiya. Are you comfortable? MR BELAWENI I think so. DR RANDERA Mr Sibiya, we come back to this town again. Jouberton is just outside Klerksdorp. You are 29 years old now, but we are going back to 1986, the 5th of March, not many days after what happened in Kanana. You were then 19 years old, and you have come to tell us what happened to you on that day. Before I ask you to go into the details of that, will you please tell us something about yourself. What are you doing? Can you hear me, clearly? MR BELAWENI Yes. DR RANDERA Sorry, would you like me to repeat what I said? Everything or just some of it? KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 2 S J BELAWENI MR BELAWENI Part of it, Sir. DR RANDERA I was saying that you have come to tell us about what happened to you in Jouberton, on the 5th of March 1986. This was two days after the killings we have heard of in Kanana in Orkney. Now before I ask you to go into those details, will you please tell us something about yourself. What are you doing now, are you married, do you have any children? MR BELAWENI This time I am not married, I don't have children. I am doing nothing. I am unemployed. DR RANDERA Will you tell us at the time of this incident in 1986, were you a member of the Jouberton Youth Congress or were you a member of the UDF or any organisation for that matter? MR BELAWENI I was taking part in UDF activities. DR RANDERA What was actually happening in Jouberton at that time, in 1986, can you please give us an idea, some of the background that was going on in Jouberton. MR BELAWENI Do you mean during that time or during that year? DR RANDERA During that year, or even if you want to take a couple of years before that. MR BELAWENI During those years there was a lot of unrest in that area. There were so many that I am not able to identify one by one. Like public violence was there and the burning of property, schools and other buildings in the area. Those are the years when there were rent boycotts, bus boycotts, et cetera. DR RANDERA Thank you. That at least gives us a clear idea of what was happening in Jouberton. Tell us what happened to you on that day. KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 3 S J BELAWENI MR BELAWENI On that day it was a normal day. I woke up okay in the morning. I didn't go out anywhere. I was just around in the township, not far from home. But early in the morning I was busy in the yard. I went to pick up my friend. I was doing gardening in the morning until around twelve o'clock. It happened, this thing happened round about three o'clock, it was a Wednesday. That's why I was doing the rest of the day. It was not even studying that part of the morning. We were just outside in the garden. It was the time when my friend was at the back of the yard. He was not aware where I was. It was hot that day. Then I decided just to pack up the instruments that I was using, so that I will complete my work in the late afternoon or maybe tomorrow morning. Then I heard gun shots from the back. I didn't know what is happening, but I could hear the bang. Then I turned around and looked behind me, trying to balance with my left leg. I didn't realise that it didn't have strength. Then I wanted to fall down, but my head was a little bit down. I could see two policemen, White policemen, the one was a little bit hefty, the other one was lean. When I turned around, suddenly I heard other shots. They were not the same number of shots as before. Then I fell down. After that I became conscious in hospital, in the intensive care unit. Then the sisters told me what happened to me. The sisters told me that they are going to do this and that. My body is scrap, it is not the same as before, the whole body. Those people who were shooting me, I don't know them. I am not able to identify them. They said they have arrived at the hospital. I did not know what they were going to do at the hospital, but I was in the ICU. During that KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 4 S J BELAWENI time, I think I stayed from the 5th of March, I think about two weeks. Because I was discharged on the 5th of May. I didn't hear anything about the police, until when I was discharged from hospital. I decided to take some steps to lay a charge against them. It was then that I heard about them. It was somewhere in September. When they came to me they were very humble, you know, with me. They didn't ill treat me at that time. But they took me to the police station because I have a case against them. They must make their statements against me also. I gave them a statement. I accompanied them to Stilfontein police station. When I arrived at Stilfontein police station, I realised that I am arrested. Then one policeman told me that no, that the statement that we are taking now, you are now arrested and the reason is that you have laid a charge against us. Then that was all, I was arrested. The following day I was released on R200,00 bail. I did appear in court. Lastly, I was outside when the court proceedings went on. I was sentenced on the 20th of June. I was sentenced, I was convicted for public violence and I was sentenced to two years. I made an appeal. I was not successful. The appeal was dismissed. I tried to enquire about my case, my charge, because the first thing which I laid a charge against is the first one. Then they said your case we don't know it, where it ended. I was asking in court but I had to serve a sentence. I went to Boergroep, to serve my sentence there. I was released from prison in 1989. I made some attempts to meet the Human Rights lawyers. Those lawyers told me that my case, according to them, if they look deeply into it, it doesn't show that it has been KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 5 S J BELAWENI completed legally. Then there is no way they can get it right. There were lawyers again which I was using, so those lawyers were referred to. So they said they (indistinct), and so they could see that they were defeated, so there is nothing they can do further. That's where my case has ended up till now. DR RANDERA Mr Sibiya, thank you very much. Just tell us were you - you said earlier on you were still at school, you were studying. What standard were you in? MR BELAWENI By then I was doing Std 10. It was in 1986. DR RANDERA Did you finish your matric? MR BELAWENI I was not able to complete in 1986, because I was arrested. Then I was released on bail and even there was little disturbance at school, I was not able to write. I registered the following year, then I was sentenced then, because it was 1987, in June. So I didn't write my final exams that year. The prison authorities denied me to write the final exam. Then I was able to write in 1989. Then I did my matric in that year. I was released in 1989 from prison. DR RANDERA Mr Sibiya, let me just understand this again. You are working in your garden with a friend? MR BELAWENI Yes. DR RANDERA Yes, there is a great deal happening outside, but you are going on with you work. You admit to being a member of the UDF, but on that day, you were doing gardening. Somebody shoots you from the back and can I just ask you, please, because you have been very modest about your injuries. Tell us what actually happened that made you end up in intensive care. MR BELAWENI I can answer you in this way. You were saying KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 6 S J BELAWENI there were a lot of things that were happening outside. Maybe you didn't understand or maybe I don't understand you correctly. DR RANDERA I don't want you to go back to that. I just want you to tell us what made you end up in intensive care unit in hospital, what were your injuries, what did they have to do to you? In your statement, can I help you? MR BELAWENI I understand you now. For me to end up in hospital, I was shot. In my bed rest report it was written multiple bullet shots. When I was asking doctors or what has happened, they said I was shot. Then they were not clear with what I was shot. They were saying my left leg is not going to work again. It took about a week because I was denying that it should be amputated. They told me the right leg, they said the right leg, they will to bring it back to normal, even if it is not going to be a perfect job, because it has pellet shots or birdshots. I don't know what they found in my legs. Because those birdshots were in the stomach. There are things which still make me painful and for which I need further treatment. Even there they said in the kidneys or in the stomach. There are things which need to be removed. DR RANDERA Let me just come back to this. You did lose your leg. Is that right? Did they amputate your leg? MR BELAWENI Yes, it was amputated, just on top of the knee. DR RANDERA You also say that your right arm is deformed and weak. MR BELAWENI Yes, that's the right hand which has been deformed and injured. KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 7 S J BELAWENI DR RANDERA Again, to come back to what I was saying earlier on. You are gardening, you get shot, you lose your leg in the process, you lay a charge against the police and you then end up spending two years in prison. Is that right? MR BELAWENI That's true, Sir. DR RANDERA Can I just ask one more question before I hand over to the Chairperson. You said that after you were shot, the police took you to Sepong Hospital. MR BELAWENI Yes. DR RANDERA Which is also in Jouberton. Were they the same policemen who had shot you? MR BELAWENI No, those who took me to hospital, they were Black policemen and the driver, then he just said (indistinct). But the one who I was with him behind the van, then he put me a tyre to rest my head, it was a Black person. DR RANDERA My last question, sorry. Were you the only person charged with public violence? Because your friend was also there with you on that afternoon. Was he also charged with public violence? MR BELAWENI I was the only one who was charged with public violence. DR RANDERA No further questions. Chairperson? CHAIRPERSON Thank you, Dr Randera. Any other questions? Tom? MR MANTHATA Jeremiah, were people not happy with - I do not understand, do you mean that day or during that week or that month or in that year? Let's say that during that time or was it a year or a month, the main thing is, do these people know the state of what was happening at that time, that the police or soldies would come and attack them? KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 8 S J BELAWENI MR BELAWENI Yes, we had some meetings. Let me put it this way. The policemen were always patrolling our area. MR MANTHATA When you had those boycotts, you knew that they were there. MR BELAWENI Yes, we knew that they were there. MR MANTHATA Then you asked for the community to support you? MR BELAWENI Yes, Sir. MR MANTHATA In Jouberton during that time, how many people died? How many people went to the hospital? MR BELAWENI I don't have statistics, but during that month the time I was in hospital, only one or two persons died and those who were injured were many. MR MANTHATA Those who were arrested, how many? MR BELAWENI I don't have the exact number, but many were arrested, even Jean was part of those people who were arrested and then Cele also was arrested also. MR MANTHATA In Jouberton when these people were arresting, how many lawyers for human rights were active there? MR BELAWENI It was Priscilla Jana, just like myself, I was usually silent. Now he is working with (indistinct) Reddy, I don't remember others. MR MANTHATA The one who was helping you, how far did he go? MR BELAWENI He was helping me as far as appeal. When I was trying to make an appeal. MR MANTHATA In your injury, was he part of the team which used to defend you? MR BELAWENI He was going to take this charge when it starts, when I was suing the State, but unfortunately the charge was not taken by the magistrate. So he took this one KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 9 S J BELAWENI for public violence, so he continued with that. MR MANTHATA I thank you, I have no further questions. CHAIRPERSON Piet Meiring? PROF MEIRING Mr Sibiya, about your own personal circumstances at the moment. You told us that you are 29 years old, not married, no children, that you are unemployed. Who is looking after you? MR BELAWENI I have applied for the subsistence allowance from the government, so they gave me a disability grant. I have applied for that in 1994. PROF MEIRING How much is that every month? MR BELAWENI It is R430,00 per month. PROF MEIRING Your parents, are they still alive, do they also take care of you? MR BELAWENI No, they are not taking care of me. The person who is alive is my father and my younger brother. PROF MEIRING Thank you. You told us that you eventually succeeded in getting your matric, your Std 10. Did you receive any further training or education? MR BELAWENI Yes, I furthered my studies, but I failed to succeed because of a lack of funds. PROF MEIRING What was your interest, in which direction did you study? MR BELAWENI I wanted to have a degree in electrical engineering. PROF MEIRING So you would like to go to university, that is a dream you have? MR BELAWENI Well, that's my dream. PROF MEIRING Thank you very much. CHAIRPERSON Thank you, Mr Belaweni. We have listened to your testimony. We have noted what you have said. We KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG were struck by, again, the senselessness of the use of firearms and deadly weapons in situations of non-violent resistance like rent boycotts and bus boycotts. Again, it just reminds us of how bad things were not so very long ago. But thank you for coming. We have noted what you have said and the Commission will deal with your matter further. Thank you. KLERKSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG