Crowds gather as Zuma judgment nears
2006-05-08 08:35
Johannesburg - Hundreds of singing supporters of former deputy president Jacob Zuma gathered outside a Johannesburg court house on Monday amid tight security before the scheduled verdict in his rape trial.
Police cordoned off the court building on Sunday night in preparation for the ruling, which caps a sensational trial that opened deep rifts in the African National Congress (ANC).
Zulu culture made another statement at the trial when Zuma's brother, Maxitha Zuma, arrived on Monday dressed in full traditional Zulu garb.
He said he had come to Johannesburg from Nkandla, Zuma's home area in KwaZulu-Natal, at the weekend. He would enter the court to hear the verdict to be passed on his brother, he said.
With Maxitha Zuma were a number of Zulu elders - also in traditional gear.
They briefly entertained the crowd of supporters with shield dances accompanied by much ululation.
Shortly after 08:00, the crowd quietened down as some Zuma supporters went on their knees in prayer, after which they sang Nkosi Sikelele.
The nearly two-month trial of the populist politician was marked by rowdy rival protests by his supporters and gender activists, and thousands of Zuma supporters turned out on Sunday for a fund-raising rally to benefit his legal fund.
Judge Willem van der Merwe is expected to begin delivering his verdict at 09:00, and the proceedings will be broadcast live on television and radio.
A group of Zuma supporters held an all-night vigil near the court, a demonstration of faith in a man once seen as South Africa's likely next president but whose career many analysts say has been severely damaged by the rape charges.
Graft charges
Zuma, 64, is facing a separate trial on graft charges starting in July.
On Monday several hundred protesters chanted and danced near the courthouse.
"He's my president. He will not be found guilty because that girl, she is lying," said Thami Kubheka, who arrived at the court at about 03:00 with a group of Zuma supporters from his home province of KwaZulu-Natal.
Other demonstrators carried signs declaring Zuma's innocence and wearing pro-Zuma t-shirts, many of them bundled in blankets against the early winter chill.
Supporters said they expected the crowd to swell into the thousands by the time the judge began delivering his ruling.
The Oneinnine campaign to raise awareness about rape started setting up its posters outside the court on Monday.
Spokesperson Delphine Serumaga said the campaign would shift its focus to the conviction rate for rape, which is between six and seven percent.
Tied to the poles outside the court in Pritchard Street were red boards bearing the words "not guilty" with only two bearing the word "guilty".
Zuma is accused of raping a 31-year-old family friend at his Johannesburg home last November. He has conceded he had sex with his accuser, an HIV-positive Aids activist, but said it was consensual.
Badly damaged political career
A guilty verdict could bring a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, while an acquittal could breathe new life into his badly damaged political career.
President Thabo Mbeki fired Zuma as deputy president last year after he was implicated in the Shaik corruption scandal, and he was later formally charged with graft.
Zuma's dismissal raised tensions within the ANC, fanned by Zuma's own charge that the corruption case was part of a political smear campaign designed to prevent him from succeeding Mbeki as president in 2009.
The rape case was another blow, especially when it emerged that Zuma had unprotected sex with the woman despite knowing she was HIV-positive, and believed he could avoid infection himself by simply taking a shower. -Reuters/Sapa