|
'S Africans not welcome in Zim'
27/10/2004 22:52 - (SA)
Erika Gibson, Beeld
Johannesburg - Hot on the heels of a Cosatu fact-finding mission deported from Zimbabwe earlier this week, eight wives of the alleged mercenaries in the Chikurubi prison in Harare were prevented from crossing the Beit Bridge border post on Wednesday morning.
They were on their way to go and visit their husbands.
The women crossed the South African border post without hassles just after 05:00 on Wednesday, but then they were told on the Zimbabwean side that their husbands are criminals and they would not be allowed into the country under any circumstances.
'No South Africans welcome in Zimbabwe'
Vernon Tinah Mabuza - whose husband, Paulus, is one of the prisoners - said the customs officials informed them that "no South Africans are welcome in Zimbabwe".
The women were accused of being part of the team of "trouble makers" from Cosatu, who were on their way back to South Africa at that very moment.
"They looked at our passports and claimed that they were fraudulent. They confiscated them as well as our bus tickets," she recounted.
Passports stamped 'Cancelled'
Almost six hours and lots of arguing later, the officials returned the passports but stamped them as "cancelled" - because they were apparently "fraudulent".
Various women had been to Zimbabwe before with similar passports, first to attend their husbands' hearings and later to visit them in prison.
The women were given five minutes to leave Zimbabwean soil. According to Mabuza, the customs officials said they had to wait until their husbands are released next year and that attempts to enter Zimbabwe before then will be in vain.
"We saved to pay the R160 for the bus ticket. We don't have money to buy new tickets, and the officials don't want to return our bus tickets."
The women clubbed together on Wednesday afternoon to try and catch a taxi back to Johannesburg. According to Mabuza, she is unsure of how and where she will obtain enough money to return to Nelspruit, from where she hails.
Ronnie Mamoepa, spokesperson for foreign affairs, said on Wednesday afternoon that the women did not have the required authorisation to visit their husbands.
His department will take up the issue with the Zimbabwean authorities.
He said this authorisation has to be obtained from the Zimbabwe High Commission.
Alwyn Griebenow, the prisoners' attorney, said there have been numerous problems when families tried to visit the men in prison - even if they had the authorisation to do so.
"A written request first has to be sent to the South African High Commission in Harare. From there a whole bureaucratic process follows until the prison authorities give the Chikurubi prison the order to place the names of certain people on the prison's visitors' list.
"The families have to have a copy from the prison authorities. Verbal authorisation is not sufficient. There have been problems with visits, and many more are expected.
"The women were under the impression that their visit had been authorised."
- Beeld
|
News
