ZIMBABWE: Alleged mercenaries take SA govt to court

[seemslikeadream]

President Thabo Mbeki


JOHANNESBURG, 19 May 2004 (IRIN) - The 70 suspected mercenaries arrested in Zimbabwe on charges of conspiring to topple the president of Equatorial Guinea are taking the South African government to court, a lawyer told IRIN on Wednesday.

"We have filed an application at the Pretoria High Court today , following the failure of the office of the president to respond to our request, sent to him on Monday, to either extradite the men to South Africa or ensure they are not handed over to the authorities in Equatorial Guinea," lawyer Alwyn Griebenow said.

The alleged mercenaries, all of whom hold South African passports, had given Mbeki 24 hours to respond to their request.

In the court application Griebenow said his clients were invoking their constitutional rights to a fair trial and to life, "which is not guaranteed in Zimbabwe and Equatorial Guinea, where the death penalty is still in existence".

more
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=41150&SelectRegion=Southern_Africa&SelectCountry=zimbabwe