CHAIRPERSON: Is Tshibili Siobo? Good afternoon Tshibili. Can you hear me?

MS SIOBO: Yes, I can hear you.

CHAIRPERSON: Would you introduce the lady who is accompanying you.

Translation please.

MS SIOBO: It is my sister of my same mother.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you, we welcome you. We will ask Dr Randera to take the oath.

DR RANDERA: Tshibili, if I can just ask you to stand please. Will you just repeat after me.

TSHIBILI SIOBO: (Duly sworn in, states).

DR RANDERA: Thank you. Dr Ally.

DR ALLY: Good afternoon to you and welcome. You are actually going to speak to us about your experiences while working conditions that you worked under and the things that actually happened to you on a farm. I will ask you to go through these events with us. Just explain to us what happened to you and why you believe these things happened to you.

MS SIOBO: Firstly, it was not a farm, it was a golf club next to Louis Trichardt hospital. That morning the man called Rogers, well I arrived at the garage. After I left the garage he called me and said Elsa. He asked me to take this spick(?). I took it and put it next to the tractor. I was standing next to the tractor and other goods were packed there. While I was still standing there, that other women who were present, while they were still sitting, Mr Rogers, when he arrived he brought the tractor and that tractor ran forward immediately and I fell down on my stomach. I was four months pregnant.

CHAIRPERSON: Take your time, Tshibili.

MS SIOBO: What happened subsequently, I just heard some sound, some voices saying Rogers, Rogers, Rogers you have killed me. I then heard some voices saying Rogers, Rogers you have killed a fellow woman. I only heard some goods falling down and I just do not know what happened thereafter.

On the following day when I was being attended at the hospital, I just do not know exactly what the time was when this was taking place, when I was being told. The nurses told me, asked me if I knew what time I arrived at the hospital and I said I was not sure. I told them that I did not know whether it was in the evening or not, but I am aware that I got injured from work. It was around quarter to seven. They told me that I got injured around quarter to seven and then they took me to the hospital at around ten o'clock. I said I was not aware of that.

They asked me if I was feeling well or there was any other problem. I said, well, my body was experiencing some difficulties. I had some pains in my body, because they had all those - they hanged(?) me and they told me, they asked me if I knew the people who were with me. I told them. After they had asked me who the people were, I told them that they were my fellow colleagues. One of them was Alizuli Gutama, Miriam, Anneli and Lydia. Well I agreed. From there I did not know what was supposed to happen. My sister could perhaps say what happened and in which situation I was when she arrived.

I would like my sister to explain further as to what happened, in which situation she was.

CHAIRPERSON: Tshibili, did your sister also write a statement.

MS SIOBO: No, because I was the only one.

CHAIRPERSON: Well, we will ask her to fill in and then later on, after this interview, we would ask her to please give us a statement, if she was there, and talk to our statement takers.

MS SIOBO: Thank you.

MS SIOBO: As I was still at the hospital, the doctors were checking me. They told me that the baby, the child was not in trouble. It is only me. They told me that I was going to experience Caesarian birth, because my hips were also affected. They said to me that I had to go to court. I think I spent about two to three weeks going up and down to court and I asked Masile Mabidi as to whether I was not in the case books. Mabidi said I was not in the case books. And I was wondering why such an issue was that way, because I was referred to the court. As it was like that, I was referred back to work.

When I arrived at work, Mr Rogers said to me, Elisa, look it was just a mistake. We are so thankful that you are back. We were not sure whether you would be able to be coming back. I just said to them, only God's hand was able to help me.

From there those other women said to me, we were taken for statement taking and we are just waiting for you because the case is on. What was so surprising was that they were waiting for me to come back from the hospital. I told them that I was not sure, because I was not around. Well, I think this is all about my injury.

However, I would like to add on what I have written on my statement. According to the statement I said I was injured at work and I tolerated just to make sure that my children could get something. When I went back to work, Sedane said me when I greeted him, I said good morning and he said good afternoon. It was so surprising because he said it is afternoon. Because, you are coming here to work after the other people had come. But it was so surprising, because most of us were getting to work there and he said, please do not speak shit to me and then I just left it there. I thought maybe he is just a White man, he is just joking.

When I went to my work place, they give us showers and there was a big hall. I do not know exactly how we used to refer to it. There was a measurement stick for marking and the White man said to me, you and Lydia are designated to this area. I said, well that is no problem, we are going to do as designated. As we were digging and he was checking, he said to me, Elisa, and I said, ja Baas? You see, you are working, do you think you are working. And I said, yes I am working. He said don't you think you are working shit here. I asked him as to why he is referring to my kind of job as shit and all these other activities, and he kept on making an innuendo about faeces and shit. He just dragged the rake that I was using and grabbed me on the chest. He knew, he was quite aware by then that I was injured. I said some scars there. After he had done that, he just shook me and then beat me and I tried to duck. As I was trying to duck, although there was, he grabbed the spade again, I ducked again. As I was ducking and he left. He said, this woman, each time I tell her, give her instruction to work, I do not know what is wrong with her, because she does not work. That I did not respond. As he went to his car, I realised that I was in a pain. Because I realised that I could not do anything, I could not resist. Just then I had to run to the police station.

When I arrived at the police station - well, let me just say, before I went to the police station next to Checkers, a van arrived. These people realised that I was just limping. They asked me as to what was wrong, because my dress were just torn apart and my breasts were out. They asked me what was wrong? I explained to them that I was assaulted at work, the golf course. They said we must go together.

As we were arriving at the police station, we were introduced, we were received by one policeman that I can recognise, but I do not know his name. After he had done that, he said we had to take statement. After statement taking he wanted to know what happened. I explained to him. Then the police people said, this is the letter that you have to take to the doctor. So I went straight to the ... My chest was painful, because it was broken. As I was still expecting. As I arrived, that woman said to me, please bring that document or that letter. I gave it to her. She said, please lie down on the bed. She asked me what went wrong. I told her that I was assaulted. I told them that it was at the golf course where this incident took place. She said I was lying. She said nobody beat me. I was now adamant. I said, are you saying that I was not beaten when you are able to see that my dress is torn apart and that my breasts are exposed. She said, no, just go back to the police station. So I left for the police station.

When I arrived at the police station they asked me about the doctor. I was just explaining to them that the doctor said I must just go back. So the policeman said it is so surprising because it is very evident that your dress is torn apart and the breasts are exposed. So no-one knew what was happening. I just said, well I, there was nothing I could do. The policeman said to me I had to go the hospital. I told them that I did not have money to go the hospital for consultation. So they asked me what was supposed to be done. I told them that I did not know what to do.

So I left for the golf course. I was so determined to really tell him, to demonstrate to him that between myself and him either he or myself could be killed. So unfortunately he was not around. I just took my dress. Well, you know very well that when you get to job, you change your clothes. Then I did the same. So I met my cousin. I said to my cousin, look do not you perhaps have ten rand that you could give? She asked me if I wanted to go somewhere. She was so surprised why I had to go to work in that state. I explained to her that this is just an addition. I told her that a White man, this old White man did this to me, I said yes. She gave me twenty rand. I then left.

I had that letter with me. I went back to the hospital. On arriving at the hospital, I explained this to the nurses. The nurses received me. As they were receiving me nicely, they said to me, what really happened prior to your getting beaten? I told them that I did not really give him any abuse.... It was just because I said good morning and he said good afternoon. And I asked him why he said good afternoon when it was good morning. He insisted on saying it was afternoon, because some other people had already clocked. I further told him that no I clocked at the same time the other people do.

Well, they examined me. They said it was so difficult. It is better for me to take the matter further to the police station. I indicated that this letter was coming from the police station. They asked me what was happening with the police people. I explained to them that this is what I was - well in fact they gave some pills and rub. I received an injection. I left for home. They also said that I must go via the police station on my way home. The policeman said to me, the man who was responsible for my case, said that the White man did not beat me. We told him that the woman came with her breasts exposed and there were some bruises on her chest. The old White man said it was not true. That was the end of it.

DR ALLY: Thank your very much for going through that with us. I am sure it is not easy for you to relive all those experiences. What I really would like to try and establish is, is whether you believe that what happened to you the first time, with the tractor, which is what gave rise to all the subsequent events? Do you believe that this was actually deliberate, or was this an accident.

MS SIOBO: Well, according to me, I would say it was just a deliberate incident. Because it is very difficult, I mean it is unrealistic for one to - suppose you are facing somebody like this and then you go there directly is it realistic?

DR ALLY: For what reason do you think that this man would have done something like this to you? What would the reason have been?

MS SIOBO: Well, I take it that I was given that big thing to go and put it there because he knew what was going to happen, because he did not even want to check whether it was in its proper place.

DR ALLY: And before this incident with Rogers, this person you are speaking about, what was your relationship with him like? Did you fight a lot, did you argue a lot about certain things?

MS SIOBO: No, I do not remember any incident like that.

DR ALLY: Did he ever accuse you of not working properly or having certain views which he did not agree with, or you were trying to change things where you were working? Was there any of that kind of interaction between you and Rogers?

MS SIOBO: Well, I do not want to really add to what has happened. It was just surprising, it was with the first time that, that took place.

However, I would like to say something again, if give the time.

DR ALLY: Yes, certainly.

MS SIOBO: When I got injured, surprisingly, I had to pay thirty rand for the ambulance.

DR ALLY: Thank you, I do not have any more questions.

MS SIOBO: Okay.

MR MANTHATA: Did you belong to any trade union? Were you unionised as golf workers?

MS SIOBO: No there was nothing like that.

MR MANTHATA: All the time working with this Rogers, what was his attitude towards you people?

MS SIOBO: Rogers is not a White man. He is just a Black person.

MR MANTHATA: How did he relate to you as workers? Was he a nice chap if I have to put it that way?

MS SIOBO: Well, Rogers was a very good person. Well, you know, people change at times. You know, sometimes they are moody. As workers that is very normal in the working place.

MR MANTHATA: Otherwise, are we referring to the same Rogers who said good afternoon when you were saying good morning? Is it the same person?

MS SIOBO: This Rogers is a Black person. That is the one I was involved with in the tractor thing. This other one is a Boer, a White.

MR MANTHATA: How does he come into the whole tractor accident?

MS SIOBO: The tractor episode is a separate thing and the beating is separate. I said something about the first statement and the second statement. You know, I wrote two statements about the beating and the injury.

MR MANTHATA: Okay. The injury is by Rogers and then the beating is by the White man?

MS SIOBO: Yes. Baas Daan was the one who beat me up.

MR MANTHATA: What has Baas Daan to do with the tractor? Is he a separate thing all together?

MS SIOBO: Separated things.

MR MANTHATA: No further questions, thank you.

CHAIRPERSON: Tshibili, we have heard your story and we are very sorry for what happened to you. Is both Roger and your ex-boss still around?

MS SIOBO: They are still at the golf course.

CHAIRPERSON: Thank you very much. We might send our statement takers there to get some statements from them relating to what had happened to you.

Thank you very much for coming.

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