CAROLYN RAPHAELY

WHEN BradleyMcCallum, a tat-tooed and tooth-less inmate of

Port Elizabeth’s St Alban’sprison, was beaten and rapedwith a baton by a warder, noone could have predicted thepropensity of the slightly builtprisoner to fight back.

“I decided enough isenough,” he recalled. “Ithought: ‘I’m going to stand upfor myself as a prisoner and ahuman being. I don’t care whathappens as long as peopleknow how I’ve been treated’.”

McCallum, 32, didn’t sufferalone. His rape was part of aprison-wide orgy of mass-beat-ings, assault and torture byabout 50 warders in retributionfor the murder of fellow-ward-er Babini Nqakula – a relativeof then-minister of Safety andSecurity Charles Nqakula, hus-band of Minister of Correc-tional Services Nosiviwe Ma-pisa-Nqakula.

“A warder shoved a batonup my anus and said: ‘Where’syour knife? You can put it inyour bank account, we’ll take itout with interest’,” McCallumsaid. “When I tried to crawlaway, he trampled on my backforcing me to lie face-down onthe floor. I felt like trash…”

Now Egon Oswald, a lawyeroperating a one-man practicefrom an old house in Port Eliz-abeth, is suing the Minister ofCorrectional Services for dam-ages on behalf of McCallumand 230 other prisoners.

It is probably the largestdamages claim yet institutedagainst the Department of Cor-rectional Services (DCS).

Hopefully, this will drawattention to the excessive use ofviolence by officials in SA pris-ons. Surprisingly, after McCal-lum lodged a complaint withthe UN Human Rights Commit-tee (UNHRC) in Geneva andwon his 2010 case, BradleyMcCallum vs SA, no oneseemed to notice or even care,least of all SA, which ignoredsix requests by the UN to

respond to McCallum’s allega-tions.

“This matter is by no meansover,” said Oswald, a quietlyspoken former commerciallawyer who was voted HumanRights Lawyer of the year bythe Cape Law Society in 2011.

“It’s a matter of principle.The rule of law must be upheldand public officials heldaccountable.”

Released on parole in 2010,McCallum still recalls the July

2005 attacks in detail: “I waslying on my bed on a Sundaymorning when I heard WarderP shouting: ‘Julle naaiers, jullema se p***, hardloop uit!’” (Youf***, come running out!) He hitme on the arm with his baton.Then he hit me on the head. Allthe time, he was shouting‘Tronk naaier, tronk bitch!’(Jail f***, jail bitch), grabbingmy shirt and kicking me.

“We were forced to runnaked down the corridor

through a tunnel of warderswho hit us while we were run-ning and sprayed us withwater. They were swearing andscreaming: ‘Today you’re goingto die!’ Then they forced us tolie on the wet floor in a longhuman chain – about 70 prison-ers from my section. Eachinmate had their nose in thearse of the person in front ofthem. If you turned to look up,they kicked you in the facewith an army boot. There were

also female warders whowalked over us, kicked us inour genitals and mocked usabout our private parts. Andthere were dogs.

“People were terrified. Thewarders beat us with batons,shock-boards, broomsticks,pool-cues and pick-axe handles.

“As a result of the electric-shock shields and the terror,the prisoners were p****** ands******* on themselves and oneach other.

“Blood was literally run-ning down those prison walls.”

Then the inmates were toldto run into their cell. In theensuing chaos, they fell overeach other, slipped and trippedon the floor which was coveredin water, urine, faeces andblood.

“There were people withAids, TB, diabetes, sick people,old people. The warders didn’tcare,” McCallum said.

Initially, Oswald foundMcCallum’s story hard tobelieve. But when complaintsflooded in, he realised it wastrue.

“Every one of these guyssuffered injuries. They hadbruises, blunt-force contusions,dog-bites, broken limbs; they’d

been electrocuted and werepsychologically traumatised.”

McCallum, for one, still car-ries scars. After the beatings,he had a dislocated jaw, headwounds, a damaged arm andflashbacks, and lost his teeth.

He said the inmates weredenied medical help for amonth. In desperation, theyattempted to treat themselvesby burning toilet paper andcovering their wounds withsand and ash.

Concerned about HIV infec-tion from other inmates’ bodilyfluids, McCallum was alsodenied HIV testing and otherbasic privileges such as phone,exercise, access to legal repre-sentation and his family.

Yet when he complained tothe authorities and anyone elsehe thought might listen, no dis-ciplinary action was takenagainst the perpetrators andno criminal sanction followed.

After all oversight mecha-nisms failed and the Stateclaimed McCallum had notmade his statutory demandwithin a stipulated six-monthperiod, Oswald approached theUNHRC on his behalf.

At the UNHRC’s 100th sit-ting, South Africa was found tohave violated its obligations interms of the InternationalConvention on Civil and Politi-cal Rights and the UN Conven-tion against Torture, Cruel,Inhuman or Degrading Treat-ment or Punishment. SA hadalso flouted the provisions ofits own constitution, violatedthe African Charter on Humanand People’s Rights and theRobben Island Guidelines.

The SA Human Rights Com-mission’s Judith Cohen said:“This is a peremptory normthat binds all states, whetherthey’ve signed the interna-tional instruments or not.”

SA was instructed to inves-tigate McCallum’s claims, pros-ecute those responsible andprovide a remedy and informa-tion about measures takenwithin 180 days. In October2011, Correctional Servicesfinally issued a media state-ment, but ignored theUNHRC’s request to publish itsfindings.

The following month,driven by what he describes as“a total antipathy to the abuseof power”, Oswald brought asuccessful High Court applica-tion compelling discovery ofall documents relating toinmates’ complaints.

Correctional Servicesspokesman Sonwabo Mbana-nga said: “The alleged incidenthappened before the minister’sappointment. When she firstbecame aware of the matter inSeptember last year, she imme-diately instructed the depart-ment to re-open an investiga-tion into the matter.”

Meantime, as Cohen pointsout, SA is not notching up agood reporting record at inter-national level. For example,SA’s report to the CommitteeAgainst Torture has been out-standing since 2009: “The factthat SA was asked to respondto the UN and repeatedlyignored the requests is indica-tive of how seriously SAregards its international obli-gations.”

What’s more, the 2010/11Judicial Inspectorate for Cor-rectional Services (JICS)report noted a “disconcertingtrend” of deaths implicatingofficials who employed “unnec-essary force in instances wherethe inmate posed little or nothreat to safety”.

Since neither DCS nor JICSprovide torture statistics intheir annual reports, it’s diffi-

cult to assess its prevalence inSA’s 241 jails. Moreover, tortureis often unreported.

“People in prison don’tstand up for their rights; theydon’t even know they haverights,” McCallum noted.

Though prison officials aresupposed to use “minimumforce” to quell violence, the useof electric-shock belts, stun-shields, stun-batons and leg-irons appears widespread.

Perhaps the fact St Alban’swarders believed they couldassault and torture inmateswith impunity is understand-able – SA has no legislationcriminalising torture eventhough it’s outlawed by the con-stitution.

“At the moment, if perpetra-tors are brought before a crim-inal court they’ll be chargedwith a common law crime likeassault, culpable homicide ormurder,” Cohen explained.

The local representative ofthe Geneva-based Associationfor the Prevention of Torture,Amanda Dissel, believes that“a crime of torture wouldassist the authorities to recog-nise acts of torture and initiateproper investigations of tor-ture with the diligence, impar-tiality and competencerequired by international law”.

“How the St Alban’s casehappened and how we preventit happening in the future iswhat matters,” said Cohen.

“This isn’t just aboutMcCallum, it’s about whatwent wrong. There are moreMcCallums out there andthere’ll be more in thefuture…”

● Carolyn Raphaely, thecurrent Webber Wentzel legaljournalist of the year, is amember of the Wits JusticeProject which investigates mis-carriages of justice.

WENDYL MARTIN

IT MAY seem to be anunlikely collaboration, butArchbishop Emeritus Des-mond Tutu and acclaimedSA artist Paul du Toit aremaking it work, turning outa one-of-a-kind art book thatwill go under the hammer toraise funds for charity inNew York later this month.

The 18-page book featuresfive handwritten quotes bythe Nobel Peace Prize win-

ner, displayed alongsidewoodcut prints by Du Toit.

It is to be auctioned at TheLunchbox Fund Bookfair,along with other hand-madebooks that were created bypersonalities as diverse asSalman Rushdie with artistFrancesco Clemente, Sting,Sir Ben Kingsley, photogra-pher Bob Gruen and YokoOno, Hugh Masekela, TonyBennet and Deepak Chopra.

The Lunchbox Fund,founded by New York-based

SA model Topaz Page-Green,is an organisation dedicatedto feeding high school pupilsin SA townships.

EngravedThe prints were made

with woodcuts and linocutsthat Du Toit engraved. The 13cuts were then painted forthe prints, and the projectcompleted with master printmaker Ruth Lingen.

Du Toit will see the com-plete bound book for the first

time when he returns to NewYork for the auction.

”When I was finished, Ifelt drained. I asked myself,did I really do this?”

All the books will bedisplayed together at PacePrints in New York fromMarch 6 to 10.

“I hope whoever gets thisbook understands the histor-ical value, and donates it to amuseum,” Du Toit said.

A bronze sculpture ofMandela’s hand that Du Toit

made once fetched $3.5 mil-lion (R26.3m).

Tutu said he did not thinkthe book would raise asmuch as the Mandela hand,as he is “nowhere near in thesame league as Madiba”.

“Don’t be surprised that Idon’t remember writing this,given my age,” he chuckled.

“(But) the proceeds arebeing used to benefit thoseless fortunate than us. Imean, what other reason doyou want?”

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RAPED INMATE SUES PRISONSt Alban’s warders’ mass torture wentunreported until one prisoner decidedhe’d had enough

Seeking justice: Lawyer Egon Oswald, left, and former prisoner Bradley McCallum.

Tutu art book to raise funds for SA pupils

JUNIOR BESTER

THE record for an upside-down escape attempt, set 87years ago by the legendaryHarry Houdini, has beensmashed – in Cape Town.

Hanging suspended bytheir ankles 25m above theV&A Waterfront on Friday,American couple WayneHouchin, 29, and his wife Fra-nia, 26, took the record time oftwo minutes and 12 seconds tofree themselves from theirstraitjackets.

Escape artist Houdini setthe original record of threeminutes in 1925, suspendedfrom a crane used to build theNew York City subway.

The Houchins, from Chicoin California, trumped hun-dreds of escape artists whohave, over the decades,attempted to beat Houdini’stime. And Friday marked notonly a new record, but also thefirst time the feat had beenattempted on the continent.

Houchin said afterwards:“It was absolutely amazingand frightening at the sametime. This has been our firstattempt at the record, and todo it is just amazing.”

He added that while hisattempt to break the recordhad been a long time in theplanning, his wife had sur-prised him with her decisionto join in, because she is

terrified of heights.She said: “This was such a

big personal challenge for meas I am terrified of heights. Icould not even go on the bigwheel here at the Waterfront.”

The couple began by strap-ping themselves into strait-jackets. They were thenstrapped by the ankles tohooks on two cranes, beforebeing hoisted 25m into the air.Once in position, the clockbegan to tick. And a smallcrowd watched their wrig-gling bodies overhead.

The soaring temperaturesadded to the drama, with thestraitjackets upping the bodytemperatures of the two.

Houchin said: “We

practised at home by hangingourselves from a very lowheight just to get used to hang-ing upside down.

“This helped us, yet at thisheight there are psychologicalproblems with looking downand seeing how high you actu-ally are.”

The pair are in SA to attendthe SA National Magic Cham-pionships, taking place todayat Artscape in Cape Town.

The event is among a seriesof similar events across theworld aimed at identifyingvarious countries’ best magi-cians.

The winners will take partin the world championships inBlackpool, England, in July.

Artwork by Paul du Toit, far right, in collaborationwith Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Pictures: CANDICE CHAPLIN

Couple smashHoudini’s record

Wayne Houchin and his wifeFrania, above and left, celebrateafter performing Africa’s firstdual upside down straitjacketescape while hanging 25m abovethe ground.

“People wereterrified ... bloodwas runningdown the walls

Bradley McCallum