The South African government was prepared to look the other way while a coup was carried out in Equatorial Guinea, it was alleged in the Pretoria Regional Court on Thursday.
State witness Crause Steyl told the court that the government knew what was being planned. He was the second state witness to do so.
”One cannot expect the South African government to give us a piece of paper. It was probably in the intelligence service or a nod from someone that [the plot was acknowledged],” Steyl told the court.
He was being cross-examined by defence advocate Margie Victor, who appears for Raymond Stanley Archer, Victor Dracula, Errol Harris, Mazanga Kashama, Neves Tomas Matias and Hendrik Jacobus Hamman.
Attorney Alwyn Griebenow, for Louis du Preez and Simon Morris Witherspoon, also cross-examined Steyl.
The eight men are accused of contravening the Foreign Military Assistance Act.
”The South African government would be on side,” Steyl said was the assurance given to those taking part in the coup.
Steyl said the issue was again raised with Simon Mann — one of the alleged planners of the coup — when in an unrelated matter former South African Air Force pilot Carl Alberts pleaded guilty in 2004 to contravening the Foreign Military Assistance Act through mercenary activities in the Côte d’Ivoire.
He said Mann again assured them that the South African government would be ”on side”.
”We were all grown men who wanted to return to South Africa. We have families here; we did not want to stay in Equatorial Guinea forever,” Steyl said.
Earlier on Thursday, Steyl told the court that he had flown the exiled opposition Equatorial Guinea politician Severo Moto back to his country to take over the reins in 2004. He was to be installed as president after Equatorial Guinea’s President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo was overpowered and flown out of the country.
Steyl said Moto was accompanied by British businessmen David Tremain and Greg Wales, and by Karim Fallaha, an associate of Ely Calil, a London-based Lebanese oil millionaire.
They have all been implicated as backers of the coup, but have denied any involvement.
”We flew to Mali from the Canary Islands to refuel. When we got there I received an SMS from my brother that they had been arrested in Zimbabwe,” Steyl said.
His brother, Niel Steyl, flew the Boeing that landed at Harare International Airport, allegedly to refuel and pick up military equipment on their way to Equatorial Guinea.
It was seized by Zimbabwean authorities and the men aboard arrested.
Steyl said they took off from Mali and took an illegal route back to the Canary Islands where they were arrested by immigration authorities.
”A neatly dressed man, appearing to be an intelligence agent, came to the airport. He spoke for 10 minutes to Moto after which we were given back our passports and told that we were free to leave,” Steyl said.
He said he went to London to try to raise money to help his friends who were arrested, but being unsuccessful he returned to South Africa.
He later pleaded guilty under a plea-bargain to involvement in a coup attempt.
He, however, could not implicate one of the eight accused as being involved in the coup.
The trial continues on Friday. — Sapa