Gcinisiko Dandala, a former police officer attached to the notorious Transkei Security Branch, has appeared in court charged with the 1985 murder of anti-apartheid activist Bathandwa Ndondo.
Dandala, 67, was released on warning by the Cala magistrate’s court on Tuesday.
NPA spokesperson Luxolo Tyali said the case was postponed to December 11 for Dandala to confirm his legal representation.
“He is out on a warning,” Tyali said.
Ndondo’s murder, at the age of 22 on September 24 1985, remains unsolved and is one of many cases involving anti-apartheid activists who are believed to have died at the hands of the former apartheid authorities.
“Dandala did apply for amnesty before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission,” Tyali said.
“However, his application was rejected as he had claimed that they shot and killed Ndondo because they feared that if they did not, they would be killed.”
It is the state’s case that Dandala, another member of the now-defunct special branch who has since died, and two askaris (now also deceased) were instructed by homeland authorities to arrest Ndondo.
Askaris were former liberation movement members who worked for the special branch.
On the fateful day, they drove to Ndondo’s home in Cala Village in a combi.
“On arrival, they allegedly found him in the same room as the late activist Thobile Bam,” Tyali said.
“They allegedly took Ndondo away in the combi, saying they were taking him for questioning at the Cala police station.
“As the combi drove through Cala Village, witnesses saw Ndondo, naked to the waist, struggling to get out of the combi through a window.”
The young man eventually fell out of the moving vehicle and started running, with Dandala, his partner and the others giving chase, while allegedly firing shots at him.
“The activist ran into a certain homestead where he fell upon entering, as his pursuers continued shooting.
“They then loaded him into the combi and took him to the Cala police station and later to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.”
A postmortem later revealed that he had been shot eight times.
Tyali said now that the criminal case had been placed on the court roll, the NPA hoped that a conviction would be secured, providing much-needed closure to Ndondo’s family and the public.
Ndondo, a cousin of advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza SC and Prof Lungisile Ntsebeza, who are brothers, was a student activist at the University of Transkei.
His political activism led to his suspension from the university and frequent spells of detention by the police.
He completed his primary school education in Cala Village and matriculated in 1980.
He registered at the University of Transkei in January 1981, later becoming a member of the Student Representative Council.
A former member of the Catholic Student Association, Ndondo went on to play a leading role in Unitra’s first democratically elected SRC.
He was suspended from the university for his political activism in 1982.
After being refused readmission to Unitra in Mthatha, Ndondo worked as a local co-ordinator of the Cape Town-based Health Care Trust in Cala.
Daily Dispatch
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.