Suspects in second treason trial ask for a discharge

THE 12 men who are being prosecuted in the second Caprivi high treason trial have asked the High Court in Windhoek to discharge them on all six charges that they face.

With most of their trial having taken place in the absence of the 12, they were back before Acting Judge John Manyarara on Monday this week, the preceding Monday, and the Friday before that, supposedly to indicate to the court what they intended to do now that the prosecution had presented the evidence of the last of its 53 witnesses in the trial. The 12 were finally removed from court on October 17, after they repeated a previous pattern of behaviour by breaking out in song in the dock, disrupting trial proceedings in the process.With the State having led the last of its 53 witnesses through his evidence, an attempt was made to deliver the typed transcript of the trial proceedings thus far to the 12 in the Windhoek Central Prison.They refused to accept the trial record.With their return to court the 12 were asked whether it was correct that they refused to accept delivery of the transcript, whether they wanted to have any of the State witnesses called back to the witness stand so that they could cross-examine them, and whether they planned to present any evidence in their defence.None of them told the court that they wanted to recall any of the State witnesses or give evidence in their own defence.Some refused to answer the question whether they had refused to accept delivery of the trial record, and others confirmed that was the case and repeated previous declarations that they did not consider themselves to be part of the trial, since in their view the Caprivi Region is not actually a part of Namibia and thus a Namibian court has no jurisdiction over them.Last Monday, one of the 12, Vincent Siliye, addressed the court on behalf of the group to ask Acting Judge Manyarara to discharge them on all six counts.Siliye said the group’s application for a discharge was not based on evidence presented to the court during the trial, but on their belief that they had not been treated fairly throughout the proceedings.Reminding the court that the two lawyers who had represented them had withdrawn from the trial on March 15, before the State’s first witness started testifying, Siliye claimed that since then the 12 had been denied help in getting new defence lawyers.The lawyers who had represented the 12 withdrew from the case after they informed the court that they viewed instructions from the 12 to challenge the legal and constitutional ties of the Caprivi Region to Namibia as instructions that they could not carry out.The relationship between the lawyers and the 12 eventually broke down to such an extent that the 12 sent a complaint to the Law Society of Namibia to accuse the lawyers of having failed in their duties to their clients, after which the lawyers withdrew from the case.Siliye repeated on Monday last week that the 12 regarded themselves as Caprivians, and not as Namibians, and that they wanted legal representation so that their lawyers could challenge the court’s jurisdiction over them on that basis.At one point during his address to the court, Acting Judge Manyarara asked Siliye to explain to him how he could say that, since they came from the Caprivi Region, they are not Namibians – whereas the evidence that the State has so far placed before the court indicates that the Caprivi Region is an integral part of Namibia, just like the Omaheke or Karas or Khomas Regions are, for example.”It’s a very simple question which has got a very simple answer,” Siliye replied, before he went on to not give that simple answer.Instead, he told the court that he did not think it was fair to ask such a question before that issue had been tested to prove that it was indeed the case.The 12 should have a legal representative present in court so that they can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the Caprivi Region was not part of Namibia, he said.This Monday, Siliye repeated that their discharge application was based on principles of fairness, equality and human rights, and that he and his co-accused did not want to be drawn into addressing the court on the facts of the evidence that the prosecution has so far placed before the court.They do not consider themselves to be part of the trial, and thus are not going to address the court on the facts of any of the charges, Siliye said.The trial has now been postponed to February 12 next year, when the prosecution is set to address the court on the discharge application.The trial has also been set down to continue during March, if necessary.All 12 accused men remain in custody.They are accused of having been part of a plan to secede the Caprivi Region from Namibia between September 1998 and December 2003.They face charges of high treason, sedition, public violence, and illegal importation and possession of firearms and ammunition.The 12 were finally removed from court on October 17, after they repeated a previous pattern of behaviour by breaking out in song in the dock, disrupting trial proceedings in the process.With the State having led the last of its 53 witnesses through his evidence, an attempt was made to deliver the typed transcript of the trial proceedings thus far to the 12 in the Windhoek Central Prison.They refused to accept the trial record.With their return to court the 12 were asked whether it was correct that they refused to accept delivery of the transcript, whether they wanted to have any of the State witnesses called back to the witness stand so that they could cross-examine them, and whether they planned to present any evidence in their defence.None of them told the court that they wanted to recall any of the State witnesses or give evidence in their own defence.Some refused to answer the question whether they had refused to accept delivery of the trial record, and others confirmed that was the case and repeated previous declarations that they did not consider themselves to be part of the trial, since in their view the Caprivi Region is not actually a part of Namibia and thus a Namibian court has no jurisdiction over them.Last Monday, one of the 12, Vincent Siliye, addressed the court on behalf of the group to ask Acting Judge Manyarara to discharge them on all six counts.Siliye said the group’s application for a discharge was not based on evidence presented to the court during the trial, but on their belief that they had not been treated fairly throughout the proceedings.Reminding the court that the two lawyers who had represented them had withdrawn from the trial on March 15, before the State’s first witness started testifying, Siliye claimed that since then the 12 had been denied help in getting new defence lawyers.The lawyers who had represented the 12 withdrew from the case after they informed the court that they viewed instructions from the 12 to challenge the legal and constitutional ties of the Caprivi Region to Namibia as instructions that they could not carry out.The relationship between the lawyers and the 12 eventually broke down to such an extent that the 12 sent a complaint to the Law Society of Namibia to accuse the lawyers of having failed in their duties to their clients, after which the lawyers withdrew from the case.Siliye repeated on Monday last week that the 12 regarded themselves as Caprivians, and not as Namibians, and that they wanted legal representation so that their lawyers could challenge the court’s jurisdiction over them on that basis.At one point during his address to the court, Acting Judge Manyarara asked Siliye to explain to him how he could say that, since they came from the Caprivi Region, they are not Namibians – whereas the evidence that the State has so far placed before the court indicates that the Caprivi Region is an integral part of Namibia, just like the Omaheke or Karas or Khomas Regions are, for example.”It’s a very simple question which has got a very simple answer,” Siliye replied, before he went on to not give that simple answer.Instead, he told the court that he did not think it was fair to ask such a question before that issue had been tested to prove that it was indeed the case.The 12 should have a legal representative present in court so that they can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the Caprivi Region was not part of Namibia, he said.This Monday, Siliye repeated that their discharge application was based on principles of fairness, equality and human rights, and that he and his co-accused did not want to be drawn into addressing the court on the facts of the evidence that the prosecution has so far placed before the court.They do not consider themselves to be part of the trial, and thus are not going to address the court on the facts of any of the charges, Siliye said.The trial has now been postponed to February 12 next year, when the prosecution is set to address the court on the discharge application.The trial has also been set down to continue during March, if necessary.All 12 accused men remain in custody.They are accused of having been part of a plan to secede the Caprivi Region from Namibia between September 1998 and December 2003.They face charges of high treason, sedition, public violence, and illegal importation and possession of firearms and ammunition.