| Time | Summary | |
| 01:21 | In 1993 more than 1500 people were killed in the orgies of violence that engulfed the East Rand townships near Johannesburg. Most of the violence was rooted in the political conflict between the supporters of the ANC, who were primarily township residents, and Inkatha hostel dwellers. Bloody massacres on trains, the activities of a mysterious third force and rampant criminality added to the incredible bloodletting. | Full Transcript and References |
| 01:57 | The townships plagued by violence since Saturday were again the scene of burning barricades, shootouts, petrol bomb attacks and stone throwing incidents today. Nine bodies with bullet wounds were found in the Twala section of Kathlehong. Residents say they were shot by unidentified men about six this morning. | Full Transcript |
| 02:22 | In response to this continuing violence self defence units were set up with the aim of protecting township residents. The SDUs, as they came to be known, were trained by Umkhonto we Sizwe soldiers. One such SDU in the Moleleki section of Kathlehong had already been operating since 1992. The unit consisted primarily of ANC Youth League members. By December 1993 tensions and disagreements began to develop between the Youth League and the SDU members. | Full Transcript and References |
| 02:54 | Now tell us what caused the division between you and the Youth League? // I have already indicated that I was patrolling at night because I was working. Sometimes members of the SDU would be patrolling during the day and people would be looting spaza shops, the taxis would be shot at. If you are a Zulu speaking person you would be assaulted and they would be saying that you are a member of IFP. Because you’ll have a spaza shop then you were expected to provide food. Now the commander was trying to bring order to this situation and that is where the division started. They removed themselves from us. They said they will stand all by themselves as the ANC Youth League and the SDU must also stand on its feet. | Full Transcript and References |
| 04:00 | This division eventually resulted in a final showdown in which eight ANC Youth League members were killed by members of the SDU. The men who took part in the killings explained their motives to the Amnesty Committee this week. | Full Transcript |
| 04:15 | What reason was given for their killing? // The SDU was to defend the community and they were harassing the community; that was a reason. An order is an order. It was difficult, even on my side, to kill them. I did not have any option. I was just ordered. // These boys had killed members of the community. // Our political objective was to protect the community. // They were killed because they killed Blanko and Bolelwa. | Full Transcript |
| 05:04 | The sequence of events that led to the killings are still unclear. According to the applicants it was sparked off by the discovery of the dead body of Bulelwa Ziwane and the murder of SDU commander, Jackson Kiyana. Ziwane was a member of the Kathlehong Civic Orginasation and a SDU supporter. Kiyana, better known as commander Blanko, was burnt in his shack and shot to death. | Full Transcript |
| 05:28 | Towards the early hours of the morning or at dawn we heard sounds of gunfire. Suddenly there was fire. We had to rush there with some other men who were with me around the corpse of Bulelwa and we found Blanko’s shack burning fiercely. | Full Transcript |
| 06:08 | In the early hours of December 7th after the Youth League attack and killing of Blanco the second in command of the SDU, Ntjebo Ndondolo then ordered the SDU’s to round up youths he said he saw attacking Blanco. He named two Youth League members, Isaac Vips Motloung and Thusanang Rikabe. For several hours armed groups of SDU men scoured the shacks of Moleleki section. By the time dawn had broken the SDU had rounded up 13 youths and the father of one of the youths, Alfred Buthelezi. Buthelezi, the SDU allege, had given the order to kill Blanco and was an IFP sympathizer. Four youths were set free and Thusanang Rikabe managed to escape. The other seven were taken from this shack in which they were held captive and herded to a nearby veld. | Full Transcript |
| 06:58 | The order had already been given out from comrade Ntjebo Ndondolo that they should be taken to the forest. I also had a stick; I was pushing them from behind. // On arrival at the veld, an order was issued out by the commander. He said they must sit down. He shot at them four times, he then issued out an order that we must also shoot. He executed that order. We shot at them. | Full Transcript |
| 07:52 | When the firing had subsided some of the victims were still moving. Ndondolo then ordered that they be finished off with spears and pangas. | Full Transcript and References |
| 08:02 | After they were shot with guns comrade Ntjebo said ‘Lefu, Mavuso is not dead, stab him.’ And then I executed that order. | Full Transcript |
| 08:13 | Myself with my axe, I’d say after the others had fired and had run out of bullets, Michael in particular Rooivark. Some people were still moving; that is the ones that were shot. Ntjebo then instructed that we should finish them off and I hit the ones who were still moving. I was only concentrating on those who were still moving because the others had already been shot and they were not moving anymore. | Full Transcript |
| 09:11 | Chairperson of the Moleleki Youth League Vips Motloung was shot at a different spot earlier that morning, but the men still had one more person to kill, the wife of Alfred Buthelezi. On their way back from the killing scene the commander and another man shot and killed Julia Buthelezi. The aftermath of the massacre left a tally of ten butchered bodies. One of the youths, Vuyani Tshabalala, survived the bullets and the hacking. He is yet to tell his story to the Committee. Ntjebo Ndondolo is said to have fled to the Transkei. Thusanang Rikabe, who gave brief testimony before the Committee admits that he killed Blanko Giyane. | Full Transcript |
| 09:53 | Yes, out of anger which emanated after the death of Bulelwa. Then the community and the Youth League decided that enough is enough, these guys must come to an end because they did not want to listen to their leaders, especially the central committee of the student … they did not want to listen…. | Full Transcript |
| 10:13 | But he denies vehemently the version of events as told by the SDU members. // You know these guys what they are telling blue lies, because what’s happening. They were the ones who were doing this and in turn claiming that ANC Youth League guys have done this. | Full Transcript |
| 10:32 | In the end it is not so much a matter of who killed who but why it was done in such a brutal manner and what political motive possibly justifies the killing of children. | Full Transcript |
