C-Max radios full blast
2003-09-19 15:13
Pretoria - Barely out of a battle to stop a usical "bombardment" by prison authorities, 13 Boeremag accused now claim fellow inmates at C-Max play their personal radios at full blast.
These and other complaints about conditions in the maximum security jail had prompted them to request a transfer to Zonderwater prison, defence counsel Piet Pistorius told the Pretoria High Court on Friday.
He had instructions to launch an urgent application if the request failed.
"I believe in the light of previous judgments the problem can be resolved. It would be a pity if we had to resort to an urgent application once again," Pistorius said.
"I've seen a measure of insight into the problem on the prosecution's side," he added.
Two of the 22 men facing 42 charges - including treason, terrorism and murder - are presently held at Zonderwater. Thirteen are held in single cells at C-Max, a prison reserved for "high risk" prisoners and not geared for awaiting-trial prisoners.
These 13 were incarcerated in the same prison following an urgent application on their behalf to facilitate legal consultations, as they share a defence team.
Recently the 13 in C-Max obtained an urgent court order to prohibit what they termed the "psychological torture" by prison authorities by means of loud radio music played over central loudspeakers.
'Inhuman'
They offered to buy radios for those prisoners in their section who did not have their own.
Now, they complain, the other inmates play their radios at full blast, without any interference from the warders.
On numerous occasions over the past few months, Pistorius has complained to the court about the "inhuman" conditions under which his clients were being incarcerated.
They objected to a lack of contact visits with their families, as well as the manner in which their cells were being searched, that the cells were bugged and that prison authorities had seized and read confidential documents.
The accused claim to be the victims of an "orchestrated attempt" to victimise them in the prison. Defence counsel have described the situation inside the prison as "explosive".
Three of the accused - "Rooikoos" du Plessis and brothers Mike and Andre du Toit - want their prosecution to be stopped, claiming they will not get a fair trial because a privileged document, setting out their defence, has been seized by the State.
The brothers testified that the State had changed or adapted evidence on the strength of the privileged document.
The application continues.
- SAPA