Call to protect hostel witnesses

Thuli says police must do their job to protect Glebelands whistleblowers

THE public protector has appealed to police to protect those with information on a two-year killing spree in the Glebelands Hostel area.

Public protector Thuli Madonsela made the appeal after her visit to the hostels this week where 56 people have been murdered.

Of those, 46 are from the Eastern Cape. The most recent, Gobidolo Majola and Makhosi Majola from Lusikisiki, were shot a week apart.

Madonsela said some hostel dwellers were too afraid to speak to her team. “They flatly refused. It was clear that they were not angry with us … they said anyone who is seen to have said something is putting their lives in danger.

“We appeal to the police to protect those who spoke to us.”

It was not her office’s place to investigate the killings but to focus on ensuring that the police did their job, she added.

“We will not interfere with criminal investigation processes.

“In fact, we have been asked to ensure that the processes proceed fairly and openly,” she said.

On Monday the protector visited the hostel with her deputy, advocate Kevin Malunga.

Her spokesman, Oupa Segalwe, said they had met a young woman who had seen her father’s bulletriddled body lying in a pool of blood.

“The traumatised young woman advised that since her father was gunned down in mid-November 2015, her family had not received any counselling and they were also battling financially.

“Another resident insisted that the police were doing their work and alleged that after police arrested persons, such persons were released on bail only to come back and harass or kill witnesses,” said Segalwe.

He said Madonsela would look to enlist the services of the department of social development to assist families affected by the killings.

“Jointly with the cluster, the public protector will seek to map a way forward on the alleged police and government inaction on the killings and the investigation of the crimes.”

Segalwe said some residents had avoided talking about the killings and focused instead on their social conditions.

“Residents allege that the conflict started with some of the residents who were part of the hostel committees corruptly allocating beds and rooms for bribes and using force to evict others in order to put the rooms up for sale,” he said.

A meeting was held yesterday between Madonsela, police and other KwaZulu-Natal authorities although it was not clear what the outcome was at the time of writing. —