MK vets ‘angry’ over Walus

‘Pent-up emotions boiling over’ could have led to prison stabbing, says Niehaus

● There are still many pent-up emotions among Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) veterans regarding the assassination of Chris Hani and this could have played a role in the attack on Janusz Walus in prison this week, say MK veterans.

They say the stabbing was the result of emotions held in check for many years “finally boiling over”.

Hani was the MK chief of staff when he was shot dead by Walus as he stepped out of his car outside his home in Dawn Park, Boksburg, on April 10 1993.

The shooting — at a precarious moment in South Africa’s political history — sparked riots and fears that the country would descend into anarchy. But a now iconic speech from Nelson Mandela calmed the situation, with democratic elections taking place a year later.

Walus and Clive Derby-Lewis, a Conservative Party MP at the time, who had lent Walus his pistol, were convicted and sentenced to death. This was later commuted to life imprisonment. Derby-Lewis was granted medical parole in May 2015 after he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and died 18 months later.

The prisoner who allegedly stabbed Walus in Kgosi Mampuru prison on Tuesday, Samuel Mandla Madonsela, received his MK training in Uganda. He was absorbed into the defence force in 1994.

In 2011 he was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Pretoria high court for murdering Lt-Col Authon Dominic Stevens and wounding Lt-Col Isak Karan at the Thaba Tshwane Air Force College in Tshwane in November 2007.

It emerged during his trial that the shooting was sparked after Madonsela was allegedly told he was a “redundant k****r who would never serve in any defence force office and would die poor”.

Madonsela, from Daveyton, pleaded not guilty to the charges of murder and attempted murder, did not give any explanation for his plea and made no admissions.

MK veteran Carl Niehaus said: “When Comrade Chris was assassinated, there were a lot of members who wanted to retaliate, but the MK and ANC leadership ordered them not to. However, the recent decision to parole Walus brought a lot of these old emotions to the surface, which finally boiled over in Tuesday’s attack.”

Recalling the Hani assassination, Niehaus said: “If it was not for Mandela’s appearance on the 8pm news, where he urged people to stay calm and not retaliate, we would have seen a totally different reaction to Walus’s crime and a different South Africa.”

Another former MK vet, Patrick Biyela from KwaZulu-Natal, said there is much anger over Walus’s pending release.

“When he killed Comrade Chris we were ready for war, but we listened to the leadership and respected the law.

“How can Walus be released without telling the truth about who sent him to kill Comrade Chris? Even after the TRC [Truth & Reconciliation Commission], he never told the truth and now the truth will leave prison with him.

“Walus is going home to be free while many of our own cadres are languishing in jail, some of them for almost 20 years.

“Even after completing life skill courses [justice minister Ronald] Lamola won’t sign for their release. [Barend] Strydom is out, [Eugene] de Kock is out and now Walus, while our comrades will die inside.”

During Madonsela’s trial IOL reported that Shaun Mulder, a lance corporal who failed the officer’s course with Madonsela, testified that he and three other candidate officers were talking in the waiting room when they heard four loud bangs. He saw Madonsela leave Karan’s office and close the door behind him.

When Mulder went into Karan’s office he found the officer holding his chin. Blood was flowing from his neck, the news site reported.

State witnesses claimed Madonsela had fired shots at Karan after Karan had “belittled” and fired shots at him.

Karan, who was seriously injured, testified that he could not remember the events of that day but doubted if he would have fired shots as he never carried a firearm.

Madonsela earlier told the court that he lived with his children in an RDP house and had grown up with no father figure. He said his life would be destroyed if he was sent to prison. However, judge Peter Mabuse said Madonsela had shown no remorse by insisting he was innocent.

Walus’s lawyer, Julian Knight, said his release would only be finalised once he had recovered.

Correctional services spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo said preliminary investigations into the attack were under way.

“Kgosi Mampuru is a facility that houses short-, medium- and long-term male and female offenders. The offender was moved to a unit used for segregation purposes while the preliminary investigations are under way.

“His interrogation about what happened still needs to be completed. These two men stayed in the same housing unit for a number of years. It was thus puzzling that such a disturbing incident erupted. This housing unit is made up of single cells, inmates get to interface when unlocked in order to access basic services, such as meals and health care.

“It is thus important to fully understand what the motive was. What made him suddenly attack a man he shared a housing unit with for more than 10 years? It is very worrying for the department.”

He said Walus had opened a criminal case with the police.

“What has been a priority is for Walus to receive appropriate medical care and be in a comfortable position to give a statement to the police,” Nxumalo said.

On Knight’s claim that an undertaking had been given to ensure Walus’s safety, Nxumalo said: “The unit manager did engage with Walus in determining whether it was necessary that he be moved to another unit and to alter his daily programme. There were measures put in place, but there was a security breach when meals were being served and this is where Walus was attacked.”

On Thursday correctional services said Walus, who is still in hospital, would be released once his condition was stable.

Knight said he could not discuss his client’s medical condition. “What I will say is that his wound was not superficial. Walus sustained a life-threatening injury. He would have died if he did not immediately receive medical attention.”

He added: “Everything about the release is unclear at present. I don’t even know what the plans are for where my client will be going after the release because for security reasons I don’t want to know.

“One thing is certain, no matter when he is released or where he will go, Walus will not be safe anywhere in South Africa.”