By: Staff Reporter
DURBAN- “I will not rest until all those responsible for killing innocent people in Phoenix and its surrounding Mawuti, Inanda and Zwelitsha, are brought to book”.
This was the promise by Human Settlement Water and Sanitation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, whilst attending the funeral of Lindokuhle Lukhuzo, 29, killed during the deadly riots that left more than 300 South Africans dead two weeks ago.
According to the KwaZulu-Natal Social Development, more than 120 bodies were found scattered in different parts of Phoenix, northwest of Durban and its surrounding Mawuti, Inanda and Zwelitsha since last Wednesday.
Several families in the province have either lost their loved ones or suffered injuries.
Sisulu promised to work with the SAPS and all other law enforcement agencies to ensure that Lukhuzo didn’t die in vain.
“What happened there cannot be left unchallenged. We can not have our children killed and no one is arrested.
Lukhuzo’s battered body was identified by his brother, Nkosinathi, at the Phoenix mortuary.
Nkosinathi said: “All we were told is that he was driving on the main road near the mall with two other men when their vehicle was stoned. They were forced to stop and ordered to step out.”
The family from Port St Johns moved from the Eastern Cape in search of a better life 30 years ago, and 29-year-old Lindokuhle was the first member of the family to be born in their new home in Durban.
Sisulu also called on people in KwaZulu-Natal not to try and take law into their own hands and try to avenge their friends and relatives.
“We do not want to see any more bloodshed. We have seen enough. I know people are angry. Please allow us to help you,” Sisulu said.
Sisulu also called on Lukhuzo’s friends who were at the funeral to assist her and come forward with information that could help in the arrest of the killers.
Lukhuzo’s childhood friend, Thozamile Beja said they have buried 15 of their friends in the past week.
“This is the last friend and if it was not for Minister Sisulu’s intervention, we were going to go and avenge our brothers,” Beja said.
With tears streaming down his face, Mfundo Majola said if the car Lukhuzo was traveling in didn’t run out of petrol, his friend would still be alive.
“He had just left the petrol station when his car was riddled with bullets. Lukhuzo and the driver were not lucky as both were killed on the spot and the other managed to escape,” Majola said.
Majola said he still has nightmares after seeing a woman who had been shot in the head with a baby crying on her back.
“I saw a heavily pregnant woman being killed,” he said, wiping tears from his eyes.
Lukhuzo’s funeral was an emotional affair as speaker after another highlighted how police failed to protect communities.
Port Saint John’s mayor Nomvuzo Cingo also pledged to work with other spheres of government in ensuring that all families who have missing people are found and given a decent funerals.
Cingo called on people to report to her office if they were struggling to find their missing siblings.
In remembrance of Lukhuzo, a businessman has pledged to Sisulu to demolish their mud house and rebuild the family a new one in Lindokuhle’s memory.
The businessman has pledged three more houses.
Lukhuzo’s sister, Lungiswa thanked Sisulu for ensuring that her brother received a decent funeral.
“This gave us hope that our government indeed does care for us,” Lungiswa said.
Sisulu pledged to work with law-enforcement agencies in their investigation of the role of security companies in the violence.
Ntombikayise Lutuka, originally from KwaBhaca, was reported last week as saying that they woke up on Monday 12 July and it was chaos on the streets.
Another Eatern Cape resident Lindiwe Nyakambi, a Mawuti resident, who is also originally from KwaBhaca, said her son Zanoxolo, 24, and his cousin Mxolisi, 22, suffered back and hand injuries during the attack on Monday July 12.
“They were ambushed and stabbed at the river separating Mawuti and Phoenix. Zanoxolo was hacked in the hand while his cousin was stabbed with a sharp object and hacked in the back. They both survived but we still need to understand the reason for the attack,” Nyakambi said
Duduzile Khwela’s 20-year-old son Xolani, from Lusikisiki, was also killed during the looting.
KwaZulu-Natal Social Development spokesperson Mhlaba Memela said the department was providing psychosocial support to the affected families.
He said a team of social workers was set up to work with peace committees in the affected areas to identify the deceased and find the injured in hospitals and clinics.
Ten people appeared at the Verulam magistrate’s court on Friday for various charges including murder, attempted murder, possession of stolen property, malicious injury to property, unlawful possession of firearm/s and unlawful possession of ammunition.
