KEMPTON PARK, South Africa, July 9 — The Bible Society worker injured in an armed robbery while on his way to a UBS-sponsored conference in South Africa last week has given a detailed account of the incident.
Edward Kamwela, 44, is the Literacy and Media Officer [non-print media] of the Bible Society of Tanzania. He had been collected from Johannesburg International Airport and was being driven to the Africa Institute of Christian Communication, a Christian media training course being held in Kempton Park, when the attack took place.
On arrival at the airport from Dar es Salaam at 7.20pm on the evening of July 1, he was met by Marié de Villiers who, with her husband, had been hired to drive conference participants to the conference centre. Mr Kamwela and Mrs de Villiers waited for a participant flying in from Lesotho, but when, after an hour or so, he had not arrived, the two left in the van with Mrs de Villiers driving.
"On the way, I noticed a small Toyota that overtook us in a dangerous way," said Mr Kamwela. "I said to Marié, 'Either these are bad people or they are bad drivers.'
"As we turned into the road about a hundred metres from the Kempton Park Conference Centre I heard shooting - two bullets.
Marié said 'Thieves!' but instead of stopping she pressed down on the gas pedal and the van went faster."
Although he did not know it at the time, the reason Mrs de Villiers lost control of the van was that she had been shot in the spine. Mr Kamwela struggled to stop the van but it crashed into a tree.
"I realised later that she probably went into the tree to avoid going into a lake a few metres beyond it," he said. "If we had not hit the tree, we would probably have gone into the water. The three attackers came to the van with machine guns. They could not open the doors because they were banged up on impact with the tree so they smashed the window with a gun and told me to give them my luggage. My right ankle was injured but I struggled to reach my bags. Then one of the attackers asked for my money. He was pointing the machine gun at me. I had US$2,100 so I gave them that and my passport.
"One kept pointing his gun at me and asked me to give him all of my money. I had another 1,500 South African rand so I gave them that too. Then the other man told him not to shoot me."
When the attackers left, Mrs de Villiers started hooting the horn and then, remembering that she had a mobile phone, phoned the police.
"They came right away with the ambulance and carried us to the hospital," said Mr Kamwela. "We were so close to the gate of the conference centre that we could see people walking around, but of course they could not see us because we were in an unlit area."
At the hospital an X-ray showed that Mr Kamwela's ankle was broken in two places. In an operation the next evening, doctors inserted two screws into the bones and put his leg in a plaster cast. Later that week he joined the conference.
"Praise be to God that he spared me!" declared Mr Kamwela.
Mrs de Villiers has undergone two operations but remains in intensive care. In a third operation due to be carried out today (July 9) doctors are hoping to remove the bullet and repair her shattered pelvis.
"We should continue to remember her in prayer," said Mr Kamwela.
Source: United Bible Societies
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