The family of Soweto Man who was allegedly gunned down by Trompies band mate and member of parliament Eugene Mthethwa has written an open letter seeking Justice for Thulani Kweyama. “To the People of South Africa, As June 16 draws near – a day that marks the fearless defiance of young people during the 1976 Soweto Uprising – we are once again confronted with a painful reminder that justice in our country remains selective, and too often, it abandons the very youth it claims to celebrate,” the letter reads. “This Youth Day, we do not only remember the bravery of Hastings Ndlovu and Hector Pieterson. We remember all young lives taken too soon, including Thulani Stanley Kweyama, a son of Soweto, whose name has long been left out of national conversations, yet whose story demands to be told.”
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Mthethwa has not denied the incident and said, he thought he was being attacked and it was out of self-defense. Kweyama’s family went on to say in the letter that they are being failed by the justice system. “Thulani was gunned down on the night of December 13, 1997, outside Club 707i in Orlando West—now the site of the Home Affairs Building. He was unarmed, accompanied by friends, and by all accounts, posed no threat. The Kweyama family has long alleged that he was shot and killed by Mr. Eugene Mthethwa, who was present that night.”
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The family said, “To this day, no one has been arrested, no trial has been held, and no case number was ever assigned. How is it possible that such a violent, public killing could vanish into silence? What does it say about the integrity of our justice system when a family cries for answers for more than two decades and is met with silence?” the letter reads. “More disturbing still is that the man accused by the family now sits in Parliament, representing the people on the very Portfolio Committee on Police and Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts, and Culture—the same sectors Thulani once worked to uplift through his career in the music industry,” the letter continues. “As an organisation dedicated to justice for young people, Justice for Youth stands firmly with the Kweyama family. Their pain is not isolated. Across the country, countless families carry the trauma of unresolved violence, failed investigations, and a justice system that often turns its back on the powerless. This Youth Day, we are not asking for symbolic gestures. We demand: A full and independent investigation into the death of Thulani Stanley Kweyama. The release of any suppressed records or evidence related to the case. A public statement from law enforcement addressing why no action has ever been taken. Accountability, no matter how long delayed or how high the position of those implicated. Justice delayed has already stolen too much. It cannot also be denied. Thulani was one of us—a youth with dreams, with dignity, with every right to live. His memory must not fade. Let his name be carried alongside those of Ndlovu and Pieterson, not as an icon of the past, but as a challenge to the present: Will we protect our youth, or only mourn them after they are gone?”
Bongi Sikelo 