Sizwe soldiers
1 October 2007
Pretoria - The National Prosecuting Authority invites you to witness the
exhumation of the remains of Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK - ANC's military wing) and
Azanla (Azapo's military wing) soldiers. The two MK members will be exhumed
from Mmabatho Cemetery, in Mafikeng tomorrow, Tuesday, 2 October 2003, while
the two Azanla soldiers will be exhumed on Wednesday, 3 October 2007 from
Ikalageleng Cemetery in Zeerust.
The MK soldiers died in a confrontation with the Bophutatswana police on 3
January 1986 in Seweding, Molopo district, Mmabatho. They are believed to be
Petros Ramodiehe Waisi from Bloemfontein, who went to exile in 1980 and David
Takalani Nembaye from Soweto, who left South Africa in January 1978.
The Azanla members are believed to be Petrus Mkobi of Kagiso and Petrus
Phaswane Masango from KwaMhlanga. The two were shot dead by South African
police on 14 September 1981, while their fellow exile, Bantubathi Nelson Zenze,
originally from Queenstown, survived the incident and was arrested and
subsequently imprisoned on Robben Island. They went into exile following the
1976 student revolt.
Forensic examination and DNA tests will be conducted to confirm the
identities. The exhumations will be conducted by Morongwa Mosothwane of the
University of the Witwatersrand and Claudia Bisso of the Argentine Forensic
Anthropology Team (EAAF).
Details of the exhumations are as follows:
Mmabatho (MK soldiers):
Date: Tuesday, 2 October 2007
Venue: Mmabatho cemetery
Zeerust (Azabla soldiers):
Date: Wednesday, 3 October 2007
Venue: Ikageng cemetery
For more details and to RSVP contact:
Phumzile Kotane
Tel: 012 845 6141
Cell: 084 407 6196
E-mail: media@npa.gov.za or pkotane@npa.gov.za
Issued by: National Prosecuting Authority
1 October 2007
