Trade union federation Cosatu is demanding that the two men accused of the murder of AWB leader Eugene Terre’Blanche be given bail.
In a statement, issued by the Congress of SA Trade Unions in the North West, the union says that the suspects must be given bail like those racist farmers who killed farm workers deliberately, claiming they were mistaken for dogs or baboons.
Moreover they confirm that local affiliates will be appearing at the Ventersdorp Magistrate’s Court to show support for the family of the accused killers when they appear on May 10 and 14.
“Our support to the family is that justice must be done.”
Terre’Blanche was killed on April 3, allegedly by one man and one teenage boy who were labourers on his farm.
Bail
In accordance with the law of South Africa, bail is granted to accused if it is believed that they will stand their trial rather than flee and that they will not interfere with the investigation prior to their trial.
The fact that some whites in Ventersdorp got bail for some racist crime or some blacks in Soweto got bail despite the fact that there were four dead schoolboys has absolutely no bearing whatsoever on the court dealing with these bail applications.
The magistrate will look at the issue of bail strictly in accordance with the law of the country and whether the two accused before him or her qualify or not in terms thereof.
The first question will be whether the accused are being charged with schedule 5 or 6.
A schedule 6 offence means that the applicant has to show that exceptional circumstances exist for him to be released on bail. In the case of murder it will be a 6 if the state believe it was planned or pre-meditated.
In contrast section 60(11) (b) of the Act provides that where the accused is charged with a schedule 5 offence the onus lies with the state. The ordinary burden of proof that the interest of justice would be best served by the continued detention of the accused remains with the state until such time as it has shown the offence with which the accused is charged to be one that falls within schedule 5.
The state may discharge this burden by giving a full and proper description of the alleged offence in the charge or by leading evidence or by resorting to a certificate from the Director of Public Prosecutions in terms of section 60 (11A) of the Act.
Then depending upon which schedule is applicable the applicants (accused) will lead evidence in the form of an affidavit or by putting the accused into the box to show why the relevant onus is discharged.
To achieve this the attorneys for the accused will cover the factors mentioned in section 60(4) a-e of the Act in order to show that bail should be granted.
Again issues relating to other bail applications are totally irrelevant to this court.
Cosatu
While it is proper for Cosatu to bring, what they believe are racial inequalities, to the attention of the public, it is not in order for them to demand from our courts that black people be given bail because, they allege, certain whites were in some other cases.
They know that the call is ridiculous and puts unnecessary pressure on a court that is — at best — going to be highly charged.
Perhaps the senior leadership might want to have a word with their branch on this issue.
Wow only bail, I am amazed they are not campaigning to have the Order of the Baobab given to them, lets not forget the jubilation of the bussed in poor masses at the court for the first hearing, boy there has not been dancing like that in Ventersdorp since the days of Andries Hendrik Potgieter. Face it Traps we are all stuffed, get used to it…..
You have a point insofar as the law is concerned. And, manifestly, Cosatu is simply grandstanding.
However, it does seem that the law is applied differently in different cases, quite probably because, contrary to your assumption, the people applying the law see things differently when it is a wealthy white person or a poor black person in front of them.
It seemed like a big issue when Judge Hlophe or the JSC appeared to be racist — but that was because they appeared prejudiced against whites. Prejudice against blacks? Ho-hum. Who cares about prejudice against blacks?
Cosatu seems not interested in the legalities of the bail procedures. It is better for their image to play on the emotions of the masses sensitive to the black/white divide.
And if judges do not give in to populist demands, they can always be taken off the case as happens to prosecutors (Selebi case).
Obviously they’ll be granted bail. Anyone surprised? Yawn ….
@creator…..”because they appeared prejudiced against whites. Prejudice against blacks? Ho-hum. Who cares about prejudice against blacks?”
Are you serious?
The various blacks accused of serious stuff (MOtata, McBride, Zuma, his friend Shaik and now Selebi) get the longest, never ending trial.
The difference? It takes them months and months and millions of state money to keep the farce going. Any judge in another country would have ruled against them within a month, accusing them of wasting the courts time.
“The Creator” (that nom de plume is a bit pompous isn’t it?)
Your statement “It seemed like a big issue when Judge Hlophe or the JSC appeared to be racist — but that was because they appeared prejudiced against whites.” is nonsense. If a high-profile person is racist that is a key and highly pertinent issue. If Hlophe is racist, how can he pontificate on judicial issues that could well have a racial content – and do so impartially ?
Whether the people in question are biased against blacks, Jews, green or purple people is irrelevant: the fact of bias alone is the issue. The incumbents should be intelligent enough not to display bias overtly – whatever their private feelings. These people weren’t even that intelligent.
Hi Traps – chuffed to have an experienced criminal attorney putting the whole case into perspective fo the reader. My only question is what about previous successful bail applications being used as a precedent? Or do precedents, by SA criminal law, in regard to bail applications, have no bearing on the case?
Other than that, Benzol has already expressed my exact sentiments on the case.
BTW, following SA’s news is far, far more interesting that sitting here in Kiwi-land and reading what goes in and out of the papers here.
Was the murder of ET a race crime or was it a labour crime? Who knows but the law should not, as Traps says, show any racial bias or place any racial considerations on it decisions with regard to bail. Do the suspects qualify for bail or not? There should be no other considerations and hopefully there are none in this case. In the USA if they have a racially charged case they move they case to another area where the judgements can be made in a quite and civil atmosphere. We should do that here and, keep the crowds of intimidators away from the courts. In South Africa it seems many issues, especially with high profile political suspects, are decided outside the courts, in the streets instead of inside, in the court, and of course we now have ‘political judgements’ that further destroy our legal system.
Me we were not bused in we believed.
I agree totaly with Michael. And this is where I find it stupid to argue our problems in color. COSATU is asking that law be disregarded on the basis of color…what nonsense I don’t suppose COSATU thinks we will support this based on blackness. Law holds this country together. This however is what the DA calls the judiciary under threat. If COSATU believes in the 2 muders of Terro’blacnhe going free(which I personally will celebrate) they should maybe put their money on getting more lawyers on the case, if they are not prepared to spend on the idea then they are just point scoring…
The black majority of this country will always and nturally so compare the legal system under democracy to that of yesteryear. When it becomes abandantly clear that white judges are handing severe sentences or treatment to blacks than they do whites what do you expect in a majority led black led country?
16 years to a black boy in Kroonstad by a white jugde as an example. If the same was happening to whites I would naturally expect simirlar sentiments.
@Bluntt L: Were -not so long ago- a few white boys (Pretoria) not sentenced for attacking a black man.
I don’t recall the colour of the judge or any other details.
Please……
Just PDI advantage, you know same as the taxi drivers, free to do whatever they want, MuAfrica you and your mates can dance all you like, I will be dancing when you are all eating off the UN trucks like the great revolutionaries in Zimbabwe… which at the current rate will be in 5 about years time……..
@Traps
Some of the commentators have in a round about way raised an important issue – realistic access to the law and proper representation.
The old cliche suggests that it is the middle classes that are screwed – the poor qualify for legal aid and the rich can afford legions of well qualified lawyers.
The middle classes cannot afford expensive representation, but do not qualify for legal aid.
The best category of all, it seems is selected senior members of the ruling party – they get a FREE (to them) team of top lawyers paid by the state, who also pays the salaries of the prosecutors.
The poor, of course are also screwed – whislt they may qualify for legal aid, how many of them know their rights, or are able to access the proper channels?
To which act are you referring with all these quotations?