State to appeal ruling granting 13 Caprivi accused freedom

The Namibian Supreme Court on Tuesday granted the state leave to appeal a ruling by the Grootfontein high court in February, which had set free 13 of the 120 alleged Caprivi rebels charged with treason. The 120 men were arrested for taking part in an attack led by the Caprivi Liberation Army (CLA) in August 1999 on Katima Mulilo, the Caprivi regional capital. John Samboma, alleged commander of the CLA, was among the 13 who were released at the end of February on order of Judge Elton Hoff at the high court in Grootfontein, 500 km north of the capital, Windhoek, who ruled that his court did not have the jurisdiction to try the men because the circumstances under which they had been held were "irregular". The 13 accused had claimed they were kidnapped from Zambia and Botswana by the Namibian authorities. However, as soon as they had been released, they were re-arrested and charged with treason. The defence team has filed an application in the Windhoek high court, asking for the Grootfontein order to be implemented. Arguments on that application will be heard on Friday. Defence counsel Patrick Kauta welcomed the Supreme Court's decision and said, "At least the court did not rule against the Grootfontein high court order, which would have then impacted on our case tomorrow [Friday]. A date for the appeal hearing in the Supreme Court has not been set.