hrvtrans HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, SUBMISSIONS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 1996-11-13 KRUGERSDORP 3 MRS D D MVUKA https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/hearing.php?id=55448&t=&tab=hearings https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/originals/hrvtrans/krugers/mvuka.htm CHAIRMAN Mrs Mvuka, good morning. Can you hear me? MRS D D MVUKA Yes. CHAIRMAN Good morning. MRS D D MVUKA Good morning. CHAIRMAN Can you introduce the person who is with you? MRS D D MVUKA This is Lisim Mvuka, she is my aunt. CHAIRMAN We welcome your aunt as well. Mrs Mvuka, will you please stand to take the oath. D D MVUKA (Duly sworn, states). CHAIRMAN Can I please ask people to switch off their cell-phones. DR RANDERA Mrs Mvuka, I am going to help you as you tell your story. You are from Bekkersdal, is that right? MRS D D MVUKA That's true, sir. DR RANDERA And you are now 53 years young? MRS D D MVUKA That's true, sir. DR RANDERA Mrs Mvuka, you are taking us back to 1990 and it concerns the abducation of your son. Before you do that, can you first tell us something about yourself. Secondly, something about your son, how old he was at the time of his abduction, and thirdly, just what was happening in Bekkersdal at the time. MRS D D MVUKA May I start by telling about myself? In 1990 on the 22nd of September, it was on a Tuesday, I was KRUGERSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 2 MRS D D MVUKA behind my house. Whilst I was there a child came running, who was with my son. They were undressed in 1980 in that week. Many people were at war. This child told me that they were carried in a Kombi. He managed to escape. He ran home to tell me about this. I went straight to the charge office in Bekkersdal and when I got there, the policeman told me - asked me whether I know where my son is. I said no, here is my younger son who came to tell me that he has been taken away. They said I should wait a while, and I did that. They took me where they said this child is supposed to be there, but he was not there. They took me back to the charge office and said I must bring the child's photo. Then I did that on Wednesday. I gave them this photo and they said I must wait until two o'clock for the van to arrive. It never did. Therefore, I went back home. I went back there again on Thursday and I wanted to know where the photo is, but they said they don't know where it is, they can't find it. When I decided to go to Westonaria in the police station there. I asked to see the ID officer and I gave him the statement regarding my son. He said I must come the following day at eight o'clock in the morning. I did that, but when I got there he was not there. I waited for him until four o'clock, but he did arrive round about four o'clock and he said I must go to D4 in Spook Town. I did. I went to D4 in Spook Town. When I got there I went into a shack and people appeared from a hole. They wanted to know what are you doing. I told them that no, I am a saleslady for Ellerines, I am looking for a customer. They said no, there is no such a person. KRUGERSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 3 MRS D D MVUKA So I went back home and I went to the charge office the following day, on Friday. I asked the charge officer what should I do, and I told him that the policemen at Bekkersdal cannot help me and they cannot even find the photograph I gave them. He said we must drive in the car. We drove together and he dropped me off at Ellisburg Highway and I wandered around in the mining area looking for my son. Since then I never saw this policeman again. At that time my son wasn't involved in anything because he was epileptic. He was not involved in any organisations. DR RANDERA: Mrs Mvuka, how old was Andrew at the time of his disappearance? MRS D D MVUKA He was 18 years old. DR RANDERA You said earlier on that there was a lot of fighting going on in Bekkersdal in that week of his disappearance. MRS D D MVUKA Yes, there were some faction fights in the location at the time. DR RANDERA What were the faction fights about? MRS D D MVUKA I do not know clearly because we managed to run to the charge office to seek hiding, but I cannot tell what these fights all about. But there were fights all over, day and night. DR RANDERA Was there anything else happening in Bekkersdal besides the fights, the faction fights? MRS D D MVUKA There was nothing else, it was just only the war in the location and nothing else. DR RANDERA There was no rand boycott or consumer boycott at the time? MRS D D MVUKA No, there were no boycotts. DR RANDERA Now when your son was abducted, he was taken in KRUGERSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 4 MRS D D MVUKA a white mini Kombi, you said in your statement. MRS D D MVUKA Yes, as the child who was accompanying him. He said he took them into a white Kombi. DR RANDERA Now you mentioned the name Kenny. MRS D D MVUKA This is the boy who managed to escape who was with my son. DR RANDERA What is Kenny's surname? MRS D D MVUKA His surname is Moroaghobo. DR RANDERA Is he still living in Bekkersdal? MRS D D MVUKA Thereafter he went back to his home, he stays in Gaghisowan. DR RANDERA What, did Kenny give any further information on what actually happened? Who was in the van? What were they after? MRS D D MVUKA I cannot be able to tell you because as I have said I was in the back of the house and this child came running and he was quite frightened, and telling us that they were taken to this white Kombi but he managed to escape. He never saw what happened thereafter, but when we tried to find out from him what happened, he could not talk. Then I decided to run straight to the police station. He couldn't tell us who was involved. DR RANDERA Did the police not take a statement from him? MRS D D MVUKA No, they just took me to some other place where they said the following day I must bring a photograph, which I did. They never took a statement. DR RANDERA Was your family involved in any political organisations in Bekkersdal at the time? MRS D D MVUKA No, sir. DR RANDERA As far as you know Andrew was not involved in KRUGERSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 5 MRS D D MVUKA any other activity? MRS D D MVUKA No, he was not involved in those things, in political issues. DR RANDERA There had been no threat made against him as far as you are aware. MRS D D MVUKA No, that was the first time. DR RANDERA You received no other information as to what had happened to him. MRS D D MVUKA I asked this child who was accompanying him, but he said they took them. I told him that we must go to the Truth Commission so that we can get help. He said no, he is afraid of those people, because they will see him on television and he fears for his life. So he could not tell what happened. DR RANDERA So did he know these people, is this what you are saying? MRS D D MVUKA I cannot hear you clearly? DR RANDERA You said that Kenny said to you that he could not come to the Truth Commission, because they might see him on television and they may be able to get him. MRS D D MVUKA Yes, sir, that is what he said. DR RANDERA Did he mention who these people were? MRS D D MVUKA No, he never did. DR RANDERA Mrs Mvuka, I don't have any other questions. I don't know whether Joyce or Wynand has. MS SEROKE Kenny, did he say these people wore black or white? These people who took them? MRS D D MVUKA He could not tell us and I didn't ask him as well, because I just left, because I was shocked at hearing that my son has disappeared. I didn't ask him about these people. KRUGERSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG 6 MRS D D MVUKA MS SEROKE How did he escape when your son couldn't escape and disappeared until today? MRS D D MVUKA When I asked him how did he manage to escape, he said that when they turned around a corner he managed to escape. I don't know how he managed. MS SEROKE In your statement you say the disappearance of your son disturbed you, to the extent that you are having sleepless nights, and you are unemployed at the moment. Is Andrew's father still alive? MRS D D MVUKA No, he passed away. MS SEROKE Are you getting medical treatment? MRS D D MVUKA Yes. MS SEROKE At which clinic are you getting treatment? MRS D D MVUKA It is at Bekkersdal Clinic. I was getting treatment from Baraghwanath in 1993, but now they transferred me to Bekkersdal Clinic to get further treatment. CHAIRMAN Mrs Mvuka, thank you for coming. I would please appeal to you, just after you have finished with us here today, to speak to one of our statement-takers so that we can take the particulars of Kenny, where he is living, if you have his address. Perhaps he will be willing to speak to us and give us some other information. We have listened to your story and we are very sorry to hear about the loss of your son. Our investigating team will follow up on some of the points you have made, and we hope we can come back to you and give you further information. Thank you very much for coming. KRUGERSDORP HEARING TRC/GAUTENG