Ex-ANC spy shot at point-blank range in Los Angeles protest
Image: Facebook
When former ANC spy Bradley Steyn saw a woman being assaulted by a policeman at a march against police brutality in Los Angeles last Saturday, he had a flashback.
It was to a day in 1988, when, at the age of 17, he watched helplessly as notorious "Wit Wolf" gunman Barend Strydom opened fire on a bus full of black people in central Pretoria, killing eight.
"My biggest regret has always been that I didn't do anything to stop Strydom hurting anyone. That's why I went to help the woman on Saturday. I hate bullies," said Steyn.
His decision cost him - Steyn was beaten and shot in the scrotum.
As he moved to push the policeman off the cowering woman, he took a baton to the chest from another officer.
He said the officer then aimed his rifle at Steyn's genitals and fired a rubber bullet directly into his scrotum.
"This is not the land of the free nor the home of the brave. This is the land of cowards who beat and hurt innocent people," said Steyn, recovering in bed following emergency surgery.
He is getting legal advice about laying charges against the LA police department.
The irony was not lost on Steyn that, having seen the Strijdom Square massacre as a teen up close and witnessing the injustices of apartheid, he was injured in a "peaceful" march against police brutality in the US.
Steyn is the co-author of a bestseller published last year, Undercover with Mandela's Spies: The story of the boy who crossed the square, which centres on the day he witnessed Strydom open fire.
"Seeing people dispersing and running away on Saturday brought back those haunting images and feelings deep inside," said Steyn.
He said people in the US have had enough of authorities using excessive force.
"I don't agree with looting but that is an expression of frustration from a small minority. The protests are more about police brutality than race, but President Donald Trump is adding fuel to the race fire."
Steyn said he was recruited in the early 1990s by the ANC's department of intelligence and security, tasked with infiltrating right-wing forces. He said his intelligence helped thwart an assassination attempt on Nelson Mandela.