TESTIMONY_GIVER:
It was in 1990 in July on the 14th. I was at the RoodepoortHotel. After about 10 minutes I heard a loud bang. I heard a loud explosion.Thereafter I don't know what happened. I found myself lying flat on the ground.I crawled. There were no people there. I saw the fire extinguishers, and thefiremen took me to the hospital. I was taken to General Hospital in Johannesburg.I stayed there for a week. After about three days it's only then that I regainedconsciousness and I was told what had happened. I was told that they would haveto amputate my leg. Then I had to sign. I refused to sign the document becauseI said I didn't know who signed for the first leg to be amputated. Then theyleft me. I stayed two weeks. On the third week they gave me - they transferredme to Roodepoort Hospital. I stayed for three months. As I was still there theother people with whom I was injured came. I asked if they had openeda case. They told me they hadn't yet started, but they will be notified later.Since then nothing has happened until I was discharged. I went to make a statement.They refused. They said I was limping so I couldn't come to them. I went therethree times. Each time I was using my own money, and each time they were refusingto take a statement from me. Until I went to Johannesburg to seek some help.At Johannesburg they phoned them. They came and asked me who were phoning them.I said I didn't know, it's the people I went to for help. They said to me theywere phoned by certain people who said I didn't want to make a statement. Iended up making the statement. I requested the case number. They asked me whotold me that they would give me the case number. I said I wanted it on my ownaccord. They took the statement and went away, and nothing came out of it. Theyasked me whether I knew that I had to be paid for being injured. I said thehotel should be responsible for the payment, it's the law. They left me then.My boss at that time told me that I would have to leave my work. I asked himwhy would I do so. They said I wouldn't be able to discharge my duties. I toldthem to pay me for all the 12 years that I have worked there. They told me Iwasn't going to get any money. They gave me an amount of R1 276,41. Theevicted me out of the hostel. I realised that I wasn't going to get any help.Then I left until today.