- Cape Town,
South Africa
- Sunday, 8
March 2009
-
- 'He asked
what the fuck I was doing there'
- A
night out with friends from overseas turned into a
nightmare for tourism student Alfred Chuene after he was
assaulted early on Sunday at a popular nightclub in
Hatfield.
Chuene was allegedly assaulted by a barman and a bouncer
for no reason while drinking with friends at Oppi
Kantien at about 2am, just before the club closed.
Two student social workers from the Netherlands - Inge
Houyen and Lieke van Huet - watched in horror as Chuene
was allegedly tossed from wall to wall, slapped and
pushed around at the entrance of the club before being
thrown outside, where the assault continued on Hatfield
Square.
'There
was so much anger in his eyes'
The two Dutch students have been
in the country for almost two months, and it was not their
first visit to Oppi Kantien with Chuene.
Trouble started when Chuene entered the club to fetch
another visitor from the Netherlands who was ordering last
drinks before closing time.
"It was at about 2am and we know the club closes then. I
went to fetch another tourist, who was at the counter. Out
of nowhere, the bartender told me I should leave and asked
what the f*** I was doing there," he said.
Chuene said the bartender pushed him towards the door, and
at the entrance he started slapping him, telling him he was
a "k****r" and that people like him should go to other
clubs.
Houyen, who was outside, threw her drink away and ran inside
to help Chuene, with Van Huet behind her. They said the
hefty bouncer who had taken over was aggressive, and
appeared to have been under the influence of substances.
'It was
unbelievable'
He continued to assault Chuene,
who did not fight back.
They said the bartender swore at them, and told them not to
get involved because they were not South African.
"There was so much anger in his eyes and he was just hitting
him and going back for more," said Houyen. "While I was
grabbing his shirt he hit me with his elbow and I fell. I
even lost my shoe in the process. It was not normal - it is
almost like he enjoyed hitting him," she added.
Eventually a group of onlookers intervened and stopped the
bouncer, who then returned to the club.
While on the way to report the matter to the police station,
they came across a metro police car with an SAPS member and
two metro police officials inside.
"We asked them to take Chuene to the police station but to
our surprise they said they understood, but there was
nothing they could do. When we asked for their names and
their ranks, they drove away. It was unbelievable," said Van
Huet.
The four then met a Fidelity guard, who agreed to drive
Chuene to Brooklyn police station.
Van Huet and Houyen said they were angry about what had
transpired.
The general manager of the club, Oregan Miller, said he was
not aware of the incident and their cameras covered only the
inside.
