ConCourt to release judgement on Zim report

2011-11-25 17:28

Johannesburg - The Constitutional Court will hand down judgment in the Mail & Guardian's bid to make President Jacob Zuma release a report on Zimbabwe's 2002 elections when it sits in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

The publication is using the Promotion of Access to Information Act (Paia) to get the report by two South African judges.

Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe retained his position in that election over opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai.

The judges, Sisi Khampepe and Dikgang Moseneke, observed the elections at the request of former president Thabo Mbeki.

Khampepe is a judge in the Constitutional Court and Moseneke is deputy chief justice. They both recused themselves when the court heard the matter in May.

Policy formation

The publisher of the Mail & Guardian asked for the report in June 2008 but the President would not release it on the grounds that it contained information given by Zimbabwean officials in confidence.

The report was to be used by the president for policy formulation.

The North Gauteng High Court granted an order compelling the president to make the report public. The Supreme Court of Appeal rejected an appeal by the presidency against the High Court order and the presidency approached the Constitutional Court.

The matter was heard in May and the Mail & Guardian submitted that it did not agree that the judges were diplomatic envoys - another reason cited by the presidency to not hand over the report.

The Mail & Guardian believes the report is important because it will help determine whether Mugabe remained in power legitimately after 2002.

- SAPA