Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

A South African soldier who killed himself in Burundi aftershooting four comrades told his family of his suicide plans the day before, the Daily News website reported on Wednesday. It said Rifleman Vusumuzi Ingongo Gasa, 30, telephoned his family of Botha's Hill, KwaZulu-Natal, on Thursday last week, telling them he was going to kill himself. While the family was still trying to digest his words, he shot his colleagues and killed himself the next day. Gasa's older sister, Sibongile Gasa, said on Tuesday her brother gave no reason for his suicide threat. "The only thing he said was that he was going through a sticky patch in his life. We thought he was just joking because his cousin, who is also in Burundi, did not tell us he was going through some problems," she said. "What a sweet guy he was. He was the kind of person who loved people and enjoyed interacting with people. We will really miss him." In 2000, Gasa's older brother, Sibusiso Gasa - a security guard - also shot himself, in Umlazi. Last week's shooting occurred moments before the six soldiers handed in their weapons and ammunition after completing nightshift duties. They were part of a 700-strong South African contingent on a United Nations peacekeeping mission in the troubled central African country. The six soldiers were all members of 4 SA Infantry Battalion of Middelburg, Mpumalanga. According to the SA National Defence Force, Gasa killed Rifleman Bashain Sejake, 30, and wounded four other soldiers at the Palace Base in Bujumbura before shooting himself. Sibongile said Gasa, who was expected home around June, said a few weeks ago that he was admitted to a hospital in Burundi after he was stabbed in two separate incidents. Defence ministry spokesman Sam Mkhwanazi could not confirm the incidents to the Daily News. He said records would be checked today. A private who worked with the six involved in the tragedy said tension among members of the group had been brewing for some time. Gasa, he said, was involved in a dispute with several of his comrades, including Sejake, earlier this month. However, he did not confirm the alleged stabbing incident. "The tension comes from a dispute over poor discipline and the fact that some in the group had been neglecting their duties," he said. The private said other factors which added to the tension among the troops included boredom. "Although we are provided with some form of entertainment this does not help with being so far away from home." The private added: "What surprises me is that this did not happen sooner and that we have not had more of these kinds of incidents. Morale has been low for some time, but now it has really hit rock bottom."

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