Legal representation gives up on treason trialists

Legal aid attorneys representing 15 people charged with high treason for the attempted secession of Namibia's Caprivi province have withdrawn from the case after being instructed to challenge the Namibian courts' jurisdiction over the Caprivi region. The accused are part of a group of 120 on trial for their alleged part in the Caprivi separatist disturbances in 1998/99. The National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) has called on the authorities "to ensure that the 15 Caprivi high treason suspects are accorded an opportunity to have competent legal representatives of their choice, funded by the state in accordance with the principles embodied in the Namibian constitution". The right to legal representations was an internationally recognised principle, said NSHR director Phil ya Nangoloh. "Our serious concern is that this could result in a miscarriage of justice. We think that they are entitled to legal representation, funded by the Namibian state in accordance with the laws of this country ... we do not condone a situation like this, where people are faced with very serious charges without legal representation - it is unheard of, and incompatible with our constitution and democratic principles," he commented. However, a legal expert noted that the current situation was "of the accused's own making", in that they had given their legal aid representatives instructions that were "untenable for them". Since they have no legal representation, the 15 accused are "simply not participating" in the trial, and witnesses are not being cross-examined. Their insistence that the challenge to the jurisdiction of the Namibian courts should proceed before conclusion of their trial, which caused their lawyers to withdraw, "essentially amounted to a constructive dismissal of their legal representatives", the legal expert noted.