hrvtrans HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, SUBMISSIONS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 1997-06-05 WITBANK 1 MRS EVAH FAKU JB2138 https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/hearing.php?id=56152&t=&tab=hearings https://sabctrc.saha.org.za/originals/hrvtrans/witbank/4witfaku.htm DR RANDERA MRS FAKU Faku. DR RANDERA Faku. Thank you. Mrs Faku, welcome. Would you please introduce the people who are with you this morning? MRS FAKU This is my sister. This is the deceased child behind me. DR RANDERA MR MALAN Mrs Faku, will you please swear that the evidence you will be giving will be the truth and only the truth? Say, so help me God. MRS EVAH FAKU (sworn states) MR MALAN Thank you very much. Please be seated. DR RANDERA Miss Mkhize? MISS MKHIZE Mrs Faku, we welcome you. Can you hear me? MRS FAKU Yes, I can hear you. MISS MKHIZE I would like you to explain you story. Please feel free. The Commissioners will help you to give your evidence. As the Chairman has already mentioned, you are here to talk about your daughter, Nonhlanhla. Can you please tell us her age as well as whether or not she was politically involved at the time? Just give us a picture of what kind of person she was. MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE You can take off the earphones. MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE When you arrived at the surgery, there were many children there? MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE Do you remember how many children were at the surgery and what was their condition? Do you know if any people died and if so, how many? MRS FAKU I think there were three that died on that particular day. One of them was mine. The Diani child died at her home because they passed, shooting, she was hit and died. I would say there were three who died on that particular day. The others were just being attended to by the doctor. MISS MKHIZE MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE Maybe if you try to remember the way in which you buried her, did the people, tell us about the people who came to the funeral. Was it attended by the fellow Comrades who were also involved in the march? MRS FAKU I would say there were many children at the funeral because when we were transporting her to the funeral, there were so many people that we had some taxis and buses conveying the people. I would say there were many children. MISS MKHIZE Maybe I should take you back to what they said. Was there any conflict between the police and the children or was it just the police who were marching around and shooting at the people? MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE Maybe you can further explain to us about the court case. Did you get any help from political organizations or from the South African Council of Churches? MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE What was the main aim, what was the problem? You said you had to exhume the body of the child. What was the problem? MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE After she was exhumed and it was discovered that she was shot, did you have any progress in the matter? MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE In your statement you said, someone agreed that he shot her. When did that happen? Was it in court? MRS FAKU Yes, it was in court. There were twelve policemen and the eleventh one said, I did shoot the child twice. MISS MKHIZE Did the court try to help you by asking questions as to why he shot the child? MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE DR RANDERA Mr Malan? MR MALAN Mrs Faku, in your statement and also in your evidence here you say when you met with your child in the hospital on the floor, she was bleeding all over and that she had many wounds. Can you just again tell us about those wounds and the nature of them? MRS FAKU There were just holes, bullet holes. MR MALAN But you say there were many holes. MRS FAKU Yes, all over the body. From the top of the shoulders at the back, there were holes, big holes. MR MALAN MRS FAKU MR MALAN Do you have any closer information for us as to perhaps a case number or who the policeman was. Was it a criminal case or was it an inquest? Do you have any documentation at home that we can look at? MRS FAKU I no longer have those papers but there is this White man who was the investigating officer from Pretoria. I just forgot his name. MR MALAN Once you remember the name, I would be very pleased if you could tell one of our people so that we can contact the individual to find out really what other information is available to us. Thank you. No further questions. DR RANDERA Mr Lewin. MR LEWIN Mrs Faku, could I just take you back to what you said about the situation in the township at the time and where you mention that there were a lot of police running around the township. Were there other people being killed? Were there instances either of police being killed or of Councillors being killed at the time, that you know of? MRS FAKU MR LEWIN MRS FAKU The people were furthering the struggle in the township. MR LEWIN In what sort of way though? MRS FAKU MR LEWIN But you say they were furthering the struggle. Can you give us any example of what was actually happening? MRS FAKU MR LEWIN Did the children talk at all about what they were doing? MRS FAKU About what do you mean? MR LEWIN About what they were involved in, in terms of quote, "the struggle". MRS FAKU MR LEWIN Thank you, Mrs Faku. DR RANDERA Miss Mkhize? MISS MKHIZE Just to take you back, you said your daughter left a one year old daughter behind. Can you tell us more about this daughter. How old is she? Is she attending school? MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE Is she the one at the back between the two ladies? MRS FAKU Yes, her name is Florence. MISS MKHIZE Is she still at school? What kind of a school is she at? Is it a public school in the township or is it a private school in town? MRS FAKU MISS MKHIZE Thank you. DR RANDERA Mrs Faku, is there anything else you wish to say? MRS FAKU I would like to ask the Commission if it would be possible to help my granddaughter. DR RANDERA ..... can be deciding on a policy for reparation and of course you will before then from us but to-day I just want to empathize with you on the loss of your daughter who was only seventeen years and I can see how upset your granddaughter is behind you, to have lost her mother at such a young age. She was one year of age at the time. I hope that by her coming here to-day she has learnt something about her mother and what was happening here in our country at the time. We will come back to you in terms of whatever reparation is going to be possible for you, for the loss of your child. Thank you very much.