Johannesburg - “Prison is not for the faint-hearted. There are bosses in prison and only those who can fight will survive,” warns convicted murderer Zikade Mxuthu.
He was sentenced to 47-and-a-half years in prison in 1997 for murdering a farmer near Koppies in the Free State, and released on parole in 2015.
Since his release, Mxuthu has been dedicating his time and energy to speaking to young people in an effort to dissuade them from committing crime and landing in prison, a “rough place” where not everyone survived, he said.
“I wouldn’t encourage anyone to go there … If you don’t agree with these (prison) bosses, they beat you up. They can beat you the whole year.
“These people are not fighting with fists. They want blood.
“Everything is a dangerous weapon in jail. Even socks. They tie it with a stone or keys and they call it a helicopter. It is very painful.
“You must know that you’re on your own. You shouldn’t let anyone close to you because they are studying your weaknesses. You shouldn’t even speak to everyone.”
Mxuthu, who said he went into exile to fight the apartheid government, grew up hating whites after he witnessed how badly they treated his parents.
“All I knew was to fight and to shoot. I was not educated.
“When I came back from exile, the situation was still the same.
“I was born on that farm (Koppies) and, in the early 1980s, there was a law that forced black people to have a limited number of animals, and it was illegal to exceed that number.
“When the animals gave birth we were forced to reduce them to stick to the limited number.
“My grandfather had lots of cattle when this law was introduced, and he was pressured to sell some. This happened to the extent that some of his cattle would disappear or be killed.
“At some point he was even beaten.”
Mxuthu, who obtained a degree in social work while he served his sentence, found it difficult to study in prison.
“Everything is tough in jail, even for one to study. People should not think that it is easy to study in prison. There are modules that require research. How are you going to do them while you’re in prison?
“The same officials are making it hard.
“I remember one of the officials turning down my application to do the practicals. There are other officials who would tell you that you think you
are clever just because you’re studying. Sometimes they would even deny me permission to submit an assignment.”
Despite his qualifications, Mxuthu said life had been difficult for him since his release in 2015 because some people treated him as if he were an animal while others called him isiboshwa (prisoner).
“Some start a fight with you just to see you back behind the bars. This has taught me to avoid trouble,” he said.
His sentiments were echoed by his friend, Motseki Msibi, also an ex-convict who was sentenced to 30 years for murder and armed robbery.
Msibi was also arrested in 1997 and released in 2012.
“I am still on parole even now. “In prison you can’t just wake up and join other convicts for breakfast and a bath. You must wait, observe and analyse the situation.
“If there is going to be a fight you will see everyone change their movement. All this happens without notice. It doesn’t matter whether you are involved in the fight or not, but you will be injured,” said Msibi. “In jail, every corner has a name. “There are forces who always want to escape. There are 26s who want to own money. There are 27s and they kill, and there are 28s who like women (other men) and they are dangerous, they also kill. There are also 1/1s who don’t belong to any group.”
Msibi said prisoners were categorised according to the crime they had committed.
“The people who stay with you belong to some of these groups.
“They are the ones who decide whether you live or die. This will depend on your behaviour as well.”
Sebokeng-born Msibi, who was arrested in Mafikeng in North West,
was candid when he said his love for a luxurious life landed him in jail.
“There was once a group who called themselves Amatariana and they all had nice things. These people became my role models and I joined them in carrying out a cash heist.
“Technology was not fashionable at that time. I remember these cashin-transit drivers used to move around with only one guard.
“We pointed a gun at the guard and demanded his gun and cash.
“We were arrested a few days after the crime because one among us became trigger happy and killed a security guard.
“Even today I am still asking myself why he had to kill him, because he did not fight or attack us. He just gave us his gun and cash,” said Msibi.
“Young people should stay away from trouble to avoid jail. They must know that gangsterism will not take them anywhere. I could have been a manager and maybe owned a big house, like some of my peers, if I didn’t waste so much time in prison,” he said, adding that he regretted his actions.
The two ex-cons joined hands and have become motivational speakers to warn youth about the consequences of crime and prison.
This week they were joined by former inmate Jabu Mbongo at the National Ethiopian Christian Fellowship Church in Evaton.
Mbongo was arrested and served 18 years for killing his wife and her boyfriend after he found them in bed together.
The church’s pastor, Wami Nhlapho, who holds regular prayer sessions for prisoners, said it was commendable that the three to interact with people and share their experience about prison.
Sunday Independent