Boeremag: Delays frustrate judge
2003-09-09 17:25
Pretoria - Pretoria judge Eben Jordaan expressed frustration on Tuesday at repeated delays in the Boeremag treason trial, which has still not gotten underway nearly four months after its scheduled starting date.
He grudgingly postponed the matter to next Monday to give one of the 22 accused, Mike du Toit, a chance to prepare evidence in a special application.
"It irks me that the case has to stand down for another few days," the judge said. "But I don't see any other solution."
The matter was postponed for Du Toit to study the case docket, which comprises 16 lever arch files.
It was delayed for the same reason two weeks earlier, but the defence complained to Jordaan on Tuesday that the State had refused Du Toit access to the "mother" docket.
For its part, the prosecution said defence lawyers had been given exact copies of the original docket, and a comparison as envisaged by Du Toit was therefore unnecessary. It would merely serve to waste more court time.
"The State really wants to get this trial started," chief prosecutor Paul Fick told the judge.
Paper and pens
Du Toit and two co-accused - his brother Andre and Jacobus (Rooikoos) du Plessis - brought an application last month for the discontinuation of the trial against them because of irregularities.
They claimed the State had seized a privileged document containing their defence from their prison cell and used it to bolster its case.
In the witness stand, Du Toit was asked by Fick at the time to list the instances in which he claimed the docket had been altered. He was unable to comply, and asked for time to study the docket.
On Tuesday, he told Jordaan he needed extra large sheets of paper and special pens to draw diagrams for when he returns to court next week to answer Fick's question.
The judge asked how much this would cost, and said: "If it would help get the trial started, I will buy it for him".
In granting the postponement, Jordaan commented that he had yet another "unusual" application before him. "This is becoming the rule in this case."
However, no there could be no harm in Du Toit studying to the original docket.
Another delay
"What concerns me greatly is that it will cause another delay. This case has to start now," the judge said.
The trial, due to have started on May 19, has been postponed several times due to wrangling over legal aid and an array of applications by the defence.
Jordaan has turned down three applications to date - one contesting the jurisdiction of the court, another for Fick's recusal, and the third for a separation of trials.
The court was currently hearing the fourth application.
Several more such actions were expected to be brought by the defence before the trial could ultimately get under way.
The 22 men stand accused of plotting to overthrow the government as members of the rightwing Boeremag organisation, with the aim of declaring a "Boer" republic.
They face 42 charges, including murder, attempted murder, high treason, and a range of violations of arms, ammunition and explosives laws.
On Wednesday, the Pretoria High Court is to hear an appeal by the Du Toit brothers and Du Plessis against the earlier refusal of their bail application.
- SAPA