'Mercenary' trial in prison

2004-03-22 18:11

Harare - A high court judge on Monday ordered that a court hearing for 70 alleged mercenaries, accused of plotting a coup in the government of Equatorial Guinea, would be held on Tuesday - inside the precincts of the maximum security prison they are detained in.

Judge Tedius Karwi said he accepted that prison authorities had only one truck to transport the 70 men a distance of 15km from Chikurubi prison to the Harare magistrate's court, and that vehicles needed for a military escort would break down.

The 70 are nationals of South Africa, Angola, Namibia, Democratic Republic of Congo and one is Zimbabwean, although their lawyers say they all hold South African citizenship.

They are due to make their first mandatory appearance before a magistrate since they were arrested on March 7.

Karwi rejected an application from their lawyers for an order for the state to hold the hearing in an open court.

"Chikurubi is what it is, a prison complex, and because of that very fact the public may hold the perception that holding the hearing there does not ensure that the interests of justice are met," he said.

However, the prison was "the only compromise avenue in the given circumstances."

He ordered that "conditions are made to ensure the hearing is in an open court and all interested persons have easy access to the complex" and for prison authorities to ensure that relatives of the detainees, the media be permitted on Tuesday.

Karwi also ordered that room big enough to seat 100 people be provided.

The last time a court was held inside a prison in Zimbabwe was in 1988 when four Zimbabweans accused of blowing up an African National Congress safe house appeared before a magistrate's court convened specially in Chikurubi prison.

Allegations of abuse

The Zimbabwe government says the 70 "terrorists" flew out of South Africa on March 7, aiming for the oil-rich former Spanish colony on the West African coast where they planned to overthrow President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo.

However, the United States-registered aircraft was seized and the men aboard were arrested when they stopped over in Harare where, the government says, they had arranged to load a consignment of military weaponry.

Also on Monday, the first allegations of abuse of the 70 alleged mercenaries emerged as defence lawyer Jonathan Samkange said that when they were arrested by military police at Harare international airport 15 days ago, "they were assaulted, they were kicked and they were thrown out of the plane" on to the airport tarmac.

Affidavits before the court also said that after their arrest, they were detained by military police in "undisclosed places" where they were "subjected to various forms of unacceptable treatment."

- SAPA