"I had never seen anyone die before."

These were the words of Zama Nguse, as she testified about the murder of her nephew, before a South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) hearing into unrest in July in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng. 

The first day of the hearings on Monday began detailing the experience of Pietermaritzburg residents who live in the Khan Road Corner Informal Settlement.

Local business owners reportedly targeted the Northdale informal settlement, with homes allegedly torched and residents allegedly assaulted, in response to looting at businesses in the area.

Chaired by SAHRC Commissioner Advocate André Gaum along with commissioners Chris Nissen and Philile Ntuli, the commission heard detailed testimony of how 17-year-old Sibahle Nguse was shot and killed during the violence.

Zama, Sibahle's aunt, told the panel that there had been no violence in the community before the July unrest.

On 12 July, the family fled their home after unrest in the Northdale community. The unrest started when several vehicles, with Howick license plate numbers, arrived and the occupants started burning tyres and blocking roads, Zama said. She added that law enforcement and security agencies fired tear gas in an attempt to disperse the protesters.

While they were fleeing, the family lost track of Sibahle. They were later informed by a community member that he had been shot.

Zama said she had rushed to her nephew and had seen the boy's body after he had been wounded.

"He looked like he was trying to leave his body," Zama said as she described her nephew gasping for breath.

Sibahle was rushed to hospital, where he later died, said Zama.

"Sibahle was an intelligent child. He was everything to us. All we as a family need is justice," said Zama.

However, when the family returned home in the early hours of the morning, grieving, their nightmare was far from over. Later that day, a group of men – who Zama identified only as "the Indians" – blocked roads around the informal settlement and set homes alight.

Zama said she was shot and injured while trying to retrieve a bag with her children's identity documents and clinic cards from her home before it was torched.

She also witnessed a woman being murdered while holding a two-month-old baby, Zama told the panel. The woman was shot, and her body was later set alight, Zama said. She identified her husband's previous employer as the alleged murderer. She also alleged that older people who were unable to leave their homes had been assaulted.

She said, "[The unrest] affected me gravely. I had sleepless nights and was afraid to cross the road or take my children to school. There is nothing as painful as hearing people you trust saying you're an animal and deserve to die."

Zama said she witnessed looting, but denied residents of the informal settlement were involved.

At the time, Business Report identified the woman as Nokuthula Ntsoko, who was visiting the area from the Eastern Cape. Ten other people were reportedly shot and injured. The report quoted business owners saying they had retaliated for the looting and burning down of malls in the area.

The National Investigative Hearing, which is set to be heard over three weeks, continued on Monday with testimony from Khan Road Corner resident Thabani Nguse, who was allegedly shot during the unrest.

The hearing will seek to examine the unrest that swept through South Africa, particularly in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, between 8 and 19 July.

More than 200 people were killed in the violence, with shops, businesses and schools targeted by looters and vandals. Estimates place the damage at more than R25-billion.

"The unrest exacerbated, among other things, inequality between certain communities, unemployment levels, poverty, hunger, and food insecurity," said Gaum.

"Also, of concern to the commission, are reports that as many communities took to the streets to protect their neighbourhoods and businesses, allegations surfaced of the excessive use of force, racial profiling, assaults, arson, and killings in some places."