|
SA spy 'tortured' - ISS
21/01/2005 20:45 - (SA)
Pretoria - A South African spy captured by Zimbabwean counter intelligence is alleged to have been severely tortured before agreeing to co-operate with local officials, the Institute for Security Studies said in Pretoria on Friday.
The spy was recently nabbed by Zimbabwean Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) operatives at Victoria Falls and under questioning, revealed the names of his collaborators within the governing Zanu-PF party.
Analyst Chris Maroleng said the spy would not have naturally agreed to work with the Zimbabweans as they had alleged and therefore must have reached his "pain threshold".
"The Zimbabwean CIO are renowned worldwide for their torture techniques and for their ability to extract information," he said on Friday.
Maroleng said the spy, who had not been named, was involved in a high-risk operation to try and win over the head of the Zimbabwean Counter Intelligence.
"It obviously failed," Maroleng said.
This development would be a major blow for South Africa's foreign policy on Zimbabwe, which had been described as "quiet diplomacy" since Zimbabwe's 2002 general election.
He said South African intelligence started creating support within the camp of Emmerson Mnangagwa, who was widely seen as Mugabe's successor until he was effectively sidelined in the Zanu-PF's December 2004 party conference.
"Mugabe created a power axis during the conference that cut out all young progressive members. He then drew support from all those with proven liberation credentials," he said.
Six senior Zanu-PF members including a Member of Parliament have been accused of taking part in the spy ring that was allegedly providing the South African government with information on the party's affairs.
According to AFP, Phillip Chiyangwa, a provincial Zanu-PF chairman and former Zimbabwe consul-general in South Africa, was arrested in December on charges of selling state secrets.
The state-run Herald newspaper reported Chiyangwa received $10 000 a month to pass on information to South Africa.
Four other party officials are being held in Zimbabwe for violating the Official Secrets Act: Godfrey Dzvairo, newly appointed Zimbabwe's ambassador to Mozambique, Zanu-PF's director for external affairs Itai Marchi, top security officer Kenny Karidza, and banker Tendai Matambandazo.
The sixth person allegedly connected to the affair, Zimbabwean diplomat Erasmus Moyo, reportedly escaped while being moved from Geneva to Harare.
Maroleng said it could prove very difficult for South Africa to retrieve their spy.
"The South African position is severely undermined by this development," said Maroleng adding it would mean that Mugabe's supporters would now view South Africa with increasing suspicion.
The South African Department of Intelligence declined to comment on Friday.
|
News
Zimbabwe Special Report
