Namrights calls for release of treason accused

THE Namibia Rights and Responsibilities (Namrights) organisation yesterday called on Chief Justice Peter Shivute to order the immediate release of all accused in the Caprivi treason trial.

The human rights watchdog said the request is in line with the constitutional provision that ‘a trial shall take place within a reasonable period of time, failing which the accused shall be released’.The trial started on October 23 2003 in the High Court, sitting temporarily at Grootfontein, following a secessionist revolt in the Caprivi Region that started on August 1 1999 under the umbrella of the Caprivi Liberation Army (CLA). Several people were killed in skirmishes between the CLA, the Namibian Police and Defence Force.A total of 132 people were arrested to face charges of high treason, murder, sedition and a host of other offences – altogether 275 counts.The trial has been dogged by several delays, most notably because of its sheer size and accompanying paper trail, the withdrawal of defence lawyers over the years, salary quarrels between foreign and local lawyers and a car accident that killed a prosecutor.A number of secondary and tertiary cases have also been split from the main trial over the years, causing further delays.The trial, in which 113 men are remaining in the dock, will now enter its 12th year amid occasional reports of alleged maltreatment, medical neglect, torture and unsanitary holding cells.’It is irrefutable proof that Namibia’s judicial system is largely a non-starter, plagued by lengthy delays in delivering judgements and frequent postponements as well as huge backlogs of court cases,’ Namrights said in a press statement.It expressed doubts about the constitutionality of the trial, which it said is ‘increasingly assuming dimensions of a crime against humanity’.Various international groups have called for the timely conclusion of the trial or release of the prisoners, some of which have since died in custody, with a leading international human rights body even referring to them as ‘prisoners of conscience’.Supreme Court Acting Judge of Appeal Johan Strydom also has expressed concern about the slow pace of the trial. Strydom made this remark at the end of an appeal judgement delivered in September last year. – Nampa