The South African government should urgently seek the release of Nick du Toit — one of the alleged planners of the attempted coup in Equatorial Guinea — one of the coup accused said on Friday.
Speaking shortly after the Pretoria Regional Court found him and seven others not guilty of contravening sections of the Regulation on Foreign Military Assistance Act, Simon Witherspoon pleaded for urgent action by the government.
”He is in the same boat as us and it is urgent for them [the government] to act,” Witherspoon said.
Nick du Toit was jailed in Equatorial Guinea for 34 years in 2004 after he was convicted on charges including terrorism, crimes against the head of state and possession of guns and explosives.
He had originally confessed to leading the advance party in the coup attempt in March of that year, but later retracted his statement, claiming he was tortured.
On Friday the Pretoria Regional Court discharged Raymond Stanley Archer, Victor Dracula, Louis du Preez, Errol Harris, Mazanga Kashama, Neves Tomas Matias, Hendrik Jacobus Hamman and Witherspoon.
The magistrate said that while the men’s actions were unlawful, he could not find by ”any stretch of the imagination” that they had knowingly contravened the Act.
Magistrate Peet Johnson said the state’s own witnesses proved the defence of some of the accused that they believed South Africa had approved the coup attempt. Others were under the impression that they were going to guard a mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
”There was credible evidence by the state’s witnesses that the coup was sanctioned by the South African government or that they [accused] were under the impression that it was sanctioned,” Johnson said.
He said it was ”eerie” that the men were even charged.
”How the South African secret service handled the operation by letting the men take off and only be arrested in a foreign country is also unfortunate. If they did not, this case would have been finalised a long time ago,” Johnson said.
After the verdict was given, the visibly relieved group hugged their lawyers and gave each other congratulatory handshakes.
”I feel great, I’m innocent, and no I can go on with my life,” Harris told the South African Press Association afterwards.
Dracula described the verdict as excellent, saying the case had hung over their heads for two years.
”At last we are free,” he said.
State Advocate Torie Pretorius declined to comment on the outcome.
The eight men were part of a group who returned to South Africa in 2005 after spending more than a year in a Zimbabwean prison for violating that country’s immigration, aviation, firearms and security laws.
They were arrested in Zimbabwe in March 2004 when they landed at Harare International Airport, allegedly to refuel and pick up military equipment on their way to stage the coup in Equatorial Guinea. — Sapa