A call to Thokoza residents to identify graves of their relatives
For more information, members of the community can contact Ruth Mosia on 011-999-0290
Families of the deceased persons who were buried at the Thokoza’s Schoeman cemetery in Block A4, on September 29, 1990, are requested to come forward to identify the graves of their relatives.
To assist in this regard, the metro spokesperson Themba Gadebe appealed to the affected families and community members to call their offices to make prior arrangements rather than just coming in.
“We urge these families to rather call our offices first and make arrangements to avoid coming here and receive little or no help at all,” he appealed.
He explained that graves are normally registered and linked to the deceased a few days before or after burial, but due to political violence in Thokoza during that period, records were not captured and updated.
“The affected families are urged to come forward and assist in solving the matter, while at the same time updating the municipal records,” said Gadebe.
In the early 1990s, the township became a battleground involving mainly the IFP and ANC – a fierce political power contestation widely believed to have been ignited by the apartheid regime.
Even though the exact figures of those who died in the bloody political conflict in Thokoza could not be confirmed as there are to this day missing persons who have not been unaccounted for, the figure of those slain in the violence is estimated at over 3 000.
“These following are the grave numbers that must be identified and registered: Graves 965/2 (1022), 966/2 (1023), 967/2 (2024), 968/2 (1025) and 969/2 (1026).
For more information, members of the community can contact Ruth Mosia on 011-999-0290,” appealed Gadebe.
