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NPA 'disappointed' at ruling
08/05/2006 15:49 - (SA)
Johannesburg -The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has expressed disappointment at the acquittal on Monday of axed deputy president Jacob Zuma on a charge of rape.
"Whilst the NPA is disappointed with the judgment, it respects and accepts it," the authority said in a statement.
It said the court proceedings and evidence led vindicated the police's decision to investigate the allegations of rape against Zuma.
"Furthermore, the court also vindicated the State's contention that the accused had a case to answer in court when it rejected the application for charges against Zuma to be dismissed in terms of Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act," the NPA said.
"The acquittal, together with the manner in which the proceedings were conducted, should erase all doubt that the State acted in the best interest of justice and the complainant, and that allegations of a conspiracy involving the NPA in this matter have been without merit."
The NPA called on all concerned to allow the complainant in this matter space to resume her life in conditions of peace and security, respecting her constitutional right to have laid the complaint against the accused.
Members of the public, especially the media, should not treat her in a manner that would discourage future victims of crime to come forward, the NPA said.
Judge Willem van der Merwe acquitted Zuma of rape in the Johannesburg High Court on Monday afternoon, saying he accepted Zuma's version that consensual sex had taken place.
- SAPA
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