In 2017 Monwabisi Lukhanyo Matinise, a FeesMustFall activist was arrested following the torching of the historic St Mark's Anglican Church on the District Six campus of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT). He has now been sentenced to five years imprisonment by the Western Cape regional court.
At the time in 2017, Police said that Matinise who was a first year student at the time was caught by security with a petrol bomb in his hand. Matinise has denied that he was behind the torching of the church and reports also later surfaced implying that a security company stands to benefit from the unrest which took place at the time.
His mother says that he was sentenced for arson and public violence, but that she believes that the burning of the church was not his doing.
“He was accused of burning the church but he told me it was not him. He says he was framed as he was close to the church at the time of the fire. My son is not a monster, he did not do that, but the police failed to investigate this case properly,” his mother Nomzamo said.
She says that herself and her son have been put under a lot of stress following his arrest.
He was suspended by the university following his arrest. He could not keep his jobs because he always had to attend court, sometimes three times a month. Employers got tired of him always taking time off.
Matinise was transferred to Voorberg Prison to serve his sentence. He is now one of many activists of the FeesMustFall movement like Bonginkosi Khanyile and Kanya Cekeshe who were also sentenced for their involvement in the happenings of the movement.
His mother says that he had to go through his trial alone only accompanied by family. She says that no students showed up in support of him as they have with other students who were attending cases.
I wish something can be done to get him out of jail as he does not belong there.
Students who were activists with Matinise say that they only found out recently about his sentencing.
“Earlier this month, it came to our attention that one of our own, the activist, patriot and the revolutionist of note, has been once again arrested and unfairly sentenced to five years imprisonment as from March 31."
“Well, as the revolutionists and some former #FeesmustFall activists, we found the judgment imposed on fighter Lukhanyo Matinise very unfair, unjust and preposterous. However, we have to say though, that his lawyer did mention that each year in that five years is equivalent to two months,” they said.
They say that they will engage in a weekly meeting to try and find a way to assist Matinise.
