'Blindfolded in a thornbush'

2004-07-28 16:34

Pretoria - An application to exclude 107 documents from the evidence against the 22 Boeremag treason trial accused has failed, with the judge describing the application as premature and unfounded.

Eleven of the men - who face 43 charges including high treason, terrorism and murder - claimed the prosecution was engaged in a "trial by ambush" as the box full of documents was only handed to them in May, and not at the start of the trial with the dossier.

They claimed the late revelation of the documents violated their right to a fair trial and asked Judge Eben Jordaan to forbid the prosecution to use any of the documents in any way.

They accused the prosecution of being "dishonest", and if having been in possession of the documents more than a year ago. It was argued that the State was bound by the "further particulars" it supplied and could not at this late stage suddenly produce new evidence.

The rest of the accused did not support the application.

Jordaan pointed out that further particulars to an indictment were supplied under the Constitution and were intended to provide information about specific charges.

The dossier was not an extension of the indictment, and statements in the dossier were not part of the indictment. Evidence had to be admissible and witnesses had to testify before their statements could form part of the proceedings, he said.

The judge said he was unsure what documents he was being asked to exclude, as he had up till now never seen any of the documents and did not know the nature or evidentiary value of the documents.

Application 'premature and unfounded'

"I am once again being led blindfolded through a thorn bush.

"The task of a trial court is to search for the truth. A fair trial is a gold coin with two sides - the accused's side but also the State's side.

"The application is totally premature and unfounded. It does not mean that I've found that the 107 documents are admissible. When the time comes, each document would be judged on its own merit. I can only make a ruling on the admissibility of a document if I'm aware of its contents," Jordaan said.

It meanwhile appeared the difficulty of one of the accused, Dr Lets Pretorius, in obtaining legal aid might be settled. Jordaan said representatives of the Legal Aid Board had an appointment to see him and he hoped Pretorius's problems could be solved.

The judge has repeatedly remarked that it was not in an accused's best interest to be not represented in a trial of such complexity.

The State is finally expected to call its third witness on Thursday in a trial that started more than a year ago.

- SAPA