CHAIRPERSON: May I ask if Sisinyana Rantao has arrived ? Mrs Rantao, good afternoon.
MRS RANTAO: Good afternoon, Sir.
CHAIRPERSON: Mrs Rantao, Professor Piet Meiring is going to assist you in telling your story, but before he does that, can I ask Miss Seroke to assist you in taking the oath please.
MISS SEROKE: I would ask you to stand up please. You swear that the story you are about to tell is the truth, and nothing else but the truth, so help me God.
SISINYANE RANTAO: (sworn states)
CHAIRPERSON: Professor Meiring.
PROF. MEIRING: Mrs Rantao, can you hear me ?
MRS RANTAO: I hear you well, Sir.
PROF. MEIRING: Thank you for coming. You want to tell us about your son, Elliot Mokoena. Eight years ago, when he was twenty eight years old, something happened in your family. Something happened to him. Please tell us about that.
MRS RANTAO: In 1989, my son arrived at home, then that time there was confusion, or there was political conflict at that time. He was working at a mine in Rustenberg. He arrived late in the afternoon, around seven o’clock, then there was an unrest in our area, then he entered the house, then we stayed with him in the house. Then from there we went to sleep. My son went to his bedroom to sleep. Then after that, I heard footsteps in my house, then they were fast, then they knocked and they were pushing the doors. Then somebody said, open! So I said, who are you because I’m an old woman? Then they said, open up. I woke up. After that they’ve already opened the bedroom where my son was sleeping. They didn’t give him time. They took him with the guns, then they said to me, go and sleep, you old woman. Then when I asked, where are you taking him to? They dragged him outside and the police cars were surrounding the house and the police were in the house and, together with the soldiers. They put him in a Hippo and other, his siblings were also in that police van.
To-morrow morning when I wanted to find out what happened to them, they were taken to Motswedi police station. I went to Motswedi police station. They were at Welgedacht. They were locked in a cell. I went back home. I slept. Then when they were taken to court, when they were released at home he had his leg bandaged because he was tortured. He didn’t say anything, he took his bag and said, I’m going, I’m running away, because they’re going to arrest me again. My son then left.
Then the unrest went on. My son just disappeared. We didn’t see him again, since he left that day, even up to now we haven’t seen him. I haven’t seen him since that day. Whether he has died, or what happened to him, I don’t know.
PROF. MEIRING: Thank you, Mrs Rantao. We’ve listened to your story. Thank you that you told it to us. May we talk a little bit about the disappearance of your son. I just want to know, why did the police pick on him? Was he a political activist? Was he known amongst his friend that he was very active politically ?
MRS RANTAO: He was a visitor arriving from work. He didn’t know that there is an unrest. I don’t even understand about this political activity but I don’t believe.
PROF. MEIRING: So, it was just a horrible mistake?
MRS RANTAO: I believe it was a mistake for the police to come and fetch him, because he was just arriving. He didn’t even went around in our area, in the village.
PROF. MEIRING: He was twenty years old. Did he work at that stage ?
MRS RANTAO: Yes, he was working in Rustenberg.
PROF. MEIRING: Rustenberg.
MRS RANTAO: He was working at Swartklip mine.
PROF. MEIRING: Was he already married ?
MRS RANTAO: He was still young. He wasn’t married yet.
PROF. MEIRING: Were there any children, were there any children that he had to look after ?
MRS RANTAO: He didn’t have a child.
PROF. MEIRING: So, he had to take care of his mother ?
MRS RANTAO: Yes, he was looking after me.
PROF. MEIRING: So he was sent then to prison and he was released and there, they, his left ... (interrupted)
MRS RANTAO: Yes, he was released.
PROF. MEIRING: And on that day he came home with his leg bandaged and he said he had enough. He wanted to leave. Did you have, do you have any ... (interrupted)
MRS RANTAO: Then said he’s running away, because they may re-arrest him again.
PROF. MEIRING: And you have no idea where he went? And that was not the only bad thing that happened to you. Your mother, Pauline, that her house was also burnt. Was that related to this incident or was that completely another ... (interrupted)
MRS RANTAO: After that, the house was burnt. We fled, we were no more at that place. I think in 1991. They took my property inside the house but I cannot tell who took them.
PROF. MEIRING: So that was two years later. Your son’s disappearance was in 1989 and the burning down of your mother’s house was in 1991.
MRS RANTAO: My child disappeared in 1989 and my house was burnt, my mother’s house was burnt in 1991.
PROF. MEIRING: Are you working at the moment ?
MRS RANTAO: I try to look for him, even in Johannesburg, I went even in the hospitals in Krugersdorp and other areas. I went to the police in Johannesburg but I couldn’t, I couldn’t find any trace. Then I went back home and just gave up.
PROF. MEIRING: At the moment are you working, are you employed ?
MRS RANTAO: I’m not working, Sir.
PROF. MEIRING: How many children do you have to look after ?
MRS RANTAO: I have three children and the other one is a cripple.
PROF. MEIRING: Mrs Rantao, thank you. I’ve made notes and those are the questions I needed to ask. I hand over to the Chairman.
MISS SEROKE: Ma Sisinyana, was you son working in Rustenberg in the mines ?
MRS RANTAO: Yes.
MISS SEROKE: Didn’t you hear anything of maybe what happened in the mines that when he arrived at home they came and picked him up ?
MRS RANTAO: I don’t understand, because I didn’t hear any kind of a rumour of that kind.
MISS SEROKE: At home when, at the time when he was picked up, what was happening in the village ?
MRS RANTAO: It was during the time of the unrests. It was during April, in Good Friday and he came as a person who’s come for a holiday. He was taken on the 24th.
MISS SEROKE: What was .... (interrupted)
MRS RANTAO: They were people were fighting in the village.
MISS SEROKE: What kind of a fight ?
MRS RANTAO: We were fighting with the police.
MISS SEROKE: What was the problem ?
MRS RANTAO: I would, I would not understand what was the problem.
MISS SEROKE: He arrived at a time when you were taken by the police or maybe was it quiet at that time ?
MRS RANTAO: He arrived at seven o’clock in the evening but during that time, the, this fight was going on. Then we slept and then the police came.
MISS SEROKE: Were the police going house to house or they came to your house ?
MRS RANTAO: It’s not only my house but it’s - they weren’t in the whole village. He was not the only child who was arrested but many, many people were shot and many people were arrested. Boys and girls, it was just the same.
MISS SEROKE: In your statements, you say you are staying in a shack.
MRS RANTAO: Yes, that’s true.
MISS SEROKE: Is that the same village ......
MRS RANTAO: Yes, it was. Yes, we’re staying at Legobo, Legobo village but I’m not staying with my mother anymore.
MISS SEROKE: You the property which you’re going to use to build was taken, so you are not able to build?
MRS RANTAO: Yes, I’m not able to build because I don’t have enough finance.
MISS SEROKE: Thank you, Ma’am.
CHAIRPERSON: Mrs Rantao, thank you very, very much for coming. We see and we hear your suffering. To have lost a son at such a young age and still not knowing where he is, must be frightening. I want to appeal actually to-day that to many of the people who was sitting here, because we’ve heard many stories from Legobo to-day, that if there’s anybody here to-day who can give us any information about this young man, I think that the opportunity is here. We can, we can take that information from you. Our statement takers are at the back of the hall and it will greatly assist our enquiries and certainly it will help Mrs Rantao in her suffering. So please, if there’s anybody who knows as to what happened to this young man, if you can come forward. I thank you very much Mrs Rantao for coming to-day.
