TRUTH BE TOLD

PATHWAYS TO LIGHT

DATE OF INCIDENT
15 February, 1991
THE STRUGGLE FOR JUSTICE
33 years
CRIME
Alleged murder

Jazz musician Mandla Mlangeni 35, is slowly coming to terms with the death of his father who was killed when he was 5 years old. He uses music and by extension his trumpet to heal. In his debut album Bhekisizwe which he dedicated to a father he never knew, a loss that echoes powerfully through the music.
Bhekisizwe Mlangeni was a young human rights lawyer who was killed in his Soweto home by a booby-trapped walkman. It was sent by Apartheid Security Policeman Eugene de Kock aka Prime Evil, it exploded on the 15 February, 1991 as he began to listen to it.
5 year-old Mandla was a witness to this horrific scene.
Bheki was detained for political activities in 1985 at Diepkloof Prison, Johannesburg. Mlangeni and his law firm presented evidence in 1990 to the Harms Commission of Inquiry into secret hit quads. He was a pivotal lawyer in the historic Delmas 4 Treason Trial.

“I was four and a half when my dad passed on. I was at home waiting for them to come back. And heard my
mother and father’s footsteps going into the room. Moments later I heard a loud bang, I didn’t know what that was, but I immediately rushed to my father’s room. Quite a few adults
were already there and were just
devastated and crying. It was very
traumatic. Just a lot of chaos. Blood everywhere, he was blown up. I tried to wake him up, but I mean, blood
kept on splatting out. It was only
when I was slightly older that I
started processing what had really
happened. And that’s when I think it also affected me”.
Mandla Mlangeni

“I found the trumpet at the crossroads in my life, the trumpet
saved my life in that it opened up a different world for me by
helping me deal with my process of healing and coming to terms
with the history and the trauma that I have lived with since a young child”. Mandla Mlangeni

Promo

Leon Wessels

I watched TBT last night. I’m pleased that I watched it but it did disturb me.
Congratulations to Enver for reminding us the past is not never the past. I guess we
always to be reminded of our violent past.

Anonymous

I do not have words, I can feel his (their) pain. There are wounds that never show on
the body that are deeper and more hurtful than anything that bleeds.

Michael John Samuel

Powerful and deeply moving. Excellent.

Tshidiso Motasi

Wow, Enver, you really can tell a story from the soul.

Peter Goldschmid

Very moving, beautifully shot. What an amazing family. Congratulations.

Anonymous

I do remember the case with Bheki Mlangeni. It hit me hard.

Thabani Mlangeni

Thank you, Enver, balance and powerful.

Peter Harris

Congrats on the Bheki documentary, it was very moving and insightful. A fine piece of
work.

Lisa de Villiers

Congratulations, excellent documentary, well done!

Derek Titus

Truth be Told is a great series, well done.

Bhiki Minyuku

This story is truly painful, bless Mandla’s soul and his musical journey.

Anonymous

You have perfect timing, your series came at the right time to educate the many a-
political and the unknowledgeable youth born after ’98 about the ills of apartheid.

Sesetu Holomisa

Your storytelling is truly captivating. It’s fantastic that we can
access the series on SABC Plus through the catch-up feature. It’s been
invaluable for pausing, re-watching, and reflecting on specific moments.
Sesetu Holomisa