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'SHIFIDI SIX' MAY NEVER STAND TRIAL in a Nutshell

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'SHIFIDI SIX' MAY NEVER STAND TRIAL in a Nutshell JOURNALIST AND UNIONISTS CHARGED UNDER POLICE ACT - INSIDE OSATOLUNO when soldiers attack girls' hostel and injure several AN unknown number of scbool girls weft wounded at Oluno Secondary Sc: hool last weekend, when about three soldiers orthe SADF's 101 Battalion, at Ondangwa, allegedly threw an unspecified number or incendiary devices into the girls' hostel. The hostel. which. accommodates Tjilondelo reported that several of of the pupils had fled to their homes. I lOlal of 1082 schoolgirls. was re­ those hurt SUStained their injuries Hesaid that pupils reponed tohim portedly turned inlO bedlam, as fright­ while trying to jump over the high that three soldiers of 101 Ballalion ened and panicking pupils. rushing walls surrounding the hostel. arrived shortly before 24hOO at the for cover in all directions, fled the When reporters from The Namib­ hostel. claiming to be looking for schoolgroWlds for their rural homes. ian visited the hostel last Sunday, their girlfriends. Mos t ofLhe pupils sustained slight less than 200 pupils were left there The soldiers, apparently when they bum wounds, for which several of following the incident. The principal noticed thai the school girls were not them received treatment at the then also pointed OUI thll it was not interested in their advances, disap- Onandjokwe hospitaL plSsibJe to give an cue! number of The school principal, Mr Paul those injured in the incident, as most cont on page 2 'SHIFIDI SIX' MAY NEVER STAND TRIAL BY MARK VERBAAN SIX members of the security forces, and in particular four white SADF officerSt might never stand trial for the murder-of a elderly S""wapo member three)'ears lrgo now that the South African government has decided to file for leave to appeal against a Windhoek Supreme Court judgement this week, A full bench of three Supreme The case was expected to rock. the with killing a civilian, Mr Frans Court judges on Monday invalidated military hierarchy in Na.mibia and UapotA, in northern Namibia in 1985. a certificate issued by State Presi­ South Africa after details of • high­ The dead man's widow, Victoria dent PW Botha which gave inunu­ level military conspiracy involving Mweuhanga, brought an application nity from prosecution on murder the accused emerged. in an inquesl to set aside the certificate and was charges to six soldiers of the SADF into the death oflhe 58-ye.--oId Swap> successful. and the SWA Territory Foree, member. However, the Slate President was The men charged with the murder The Slate claimed thai the officer granted leave to appeal Old the mat· of Swapo nationalist and fonner commanding 101 Batt.alion al On­ ter is c urrently pending in the Blo­ Robben Island prisoner Immanuel dangw .. Colonel Willcm Welgcmocd. emfontein Appelate Division. Shifidi at a public rally in November had been instructed by a Colonel Counsel for the applicant, Sidney 1986 include two colonels, a com· Johannes Vorster to despatch mem­ Kenuidge SC, said of the certificate mandant and a lieutenant. ben of the battaliat 10 • Swapo moeting at the time: "Nobody could honestly Yesterday marked the day, a year being held in Windhoek on Novem­ believe that a group of armed sol­ ago. that relatives of the dead man ber 30, 1996. diers was acting in good faith when were told outside the Supreme Court. It was claimed that Welgemoed they battered the skull of a 45-year­ while waiting for the trial to begin. had ordered Lieutenant Nicolaas old Wlarmed man of slight build, thai PW Botha had stopped proceed­ Prinsloo to assemble 54 black. sol­ broke his neck. partially strOlgled ings. diers from the unit and see to it that hlm with a rope, broke nine of his Six months earlier the Attorney they be armed with clubs, pangas, ribs Old ruptured his spleen." General, Mr Estienne Pretorius, had bows and arrows and knives. Windhoek lawyers have now ex· anTIOUIlced the prosecution of the six The soldiers, dressed in civilian pressed fears on the fact thai the Statc soldiers on charges ranging from clothes, infiltrated the Swapo meet­ Pre5ident has filed for leave to ap­ murder to contravening the Riotous ing and succeeded in violently dis­ peal against the Shifidi judgemtnL Assemblies Act. rupting the proceedings. ShifKli was A legal S01.lTCt, who wished 10 The accused had already made two stabbed to death by one or more of remain anonymous for professional brief appearances in the Magistrates the 101 Battalion soldiers as the rusoos, said he belieYc:d ihalllll aweaJ 101 BATTALION member pictured in the north ret'ently by John Court, but on the day they were to meeting erupted in chaos. against the Shifidi judgement could Liebenberg. The soldier was handing out 101 caps which say ' we appear tn the Supreme Court the Late this week the respondents who be used u a .. useful delaying laC· Administrator General, Louis Pienaar. opposed the application to have the are fighting ror true independence'. Are they going to contest the acting on behalf of the Slate Presi­ certificate set aside, which include cont on page 4 UN elections? dent, issued a certificate in tenns of the State President. the Administra­ Section 103 leT or the Defence Act. tor General and the six ~ applied This effectively granted the six for leave to appeal. Mass demos for Ahtissaari arrival? soldiers immUllity from prosecution. This foUow5 the patlern of a simi­ BY RAJAH MUNAMAVA The section Wlder which the cer­ larcaseinvolving the trial for murder tificate was issued exempts mem­ of four white South African soldiers. SECURITY Police Divisional Commissioner, Brigadier Attie Nellast week made a telephonic contact bas of the security forces &an crimi­ which W.llS also halted by the State with Swapo's Secretary for Information and Publicity, Mr Jerry Ekandjo, inquiring if Swapo was nal or civilian court action if they President in 1986 in "the national planning lastage any march to welcome UN Special Representative Mr Martti Ahtisaari, UN Special • 'act in good faith whilecombllting interest" . Representative, who is scbeduled to arrive next week Friday. teTTorism WdP operational area". The four soldiers had been charged cont on page 4 • In A Nutshell 90 Gobabls Road Klein Windhoek • 1('1: 228820 There's More To Sam's Than Good Food 2 Friday March 24 1989 THE NAMIBIAN I .,.- From the lerl; Pupils Hinda Kadhila,Margaretb AuFiku~nd Aina Mpupa CHAOS AT OLUNO cont. from page 1 memben of the security forces vis­ ited the school frequently to "rape peared, lOretum later with theexplo­ school girls." sive devices. He said during the same year, his The men then suddenly threw the office was nearly gutted to ashes devices into a group of young girl5 - --.-' following wh.t seemed like amortar ---. who stood outside their dormitories. attack. which left amongst his per­ before escaping into the darkness. sonal belongings, various school School principal, Mr Paul Tjilon~e l o showing reporters where one of the devices hit the ground Three members of the Ondangwa m.terials damaged. police also arrived at the schoollut Several of the school girls, while Sunday to question this reporter as to defiantly giving !he black power salute, "your business at this school." underlined their headmaster's views After giving. brief, but wmeces­ with shouts of "43's now, and viva UN PROBLEM - NO Sill)' explanation to the policemen. Swapo." _ one officer remarked thl!;t they too just heard about an incident at the school, and that they had arrived to HOUSES LEFT investigate. Amongst those pupils wounded in _ ADVANCE U~ited Nations contingents numbering about 600 from 43 different nations are already the incident are Fried. Iyambo, depk)yed.in Namibia, but the arrival or about 1 000 civilian personnel might have to be slowed down Johanna Shininge, 23, Aina Mpupa, because of the scar.city or accommodation in Windhoek, UN spokesman saKi on Wednesday. 17 .Margareth Awlku, 20, and Hinda Kadhila, 22. 1be UN's chief media sp;>kesman. lern, seven £rom Lebanon, three from Austnlia, the United Kingdom, Hitting out at the present violent Mr Fred Eckardofthe United States. Damascus, two from Bhagdad and Malaysia, hi land, Finland, Poland, and unlawful actions perpetrated by told a media briermg in Windhoek four from other cities. Denmark, Canada, Switzerland. h­ security forces against memben of that the nwnber of civilians pres­ The civilians were eng.ged in aly, Keny. and Spain. the civilian population in the arel, en tly in the CO\I1Itty was 10,S, includ­ administr.tion and other tasks re­ The IlOOpS were deployed at Os­ Mr Tjilondelo added thai the • 'type ing 12 from the office of the UN quired 00 prepare for the UN field halt.ti, Rundu, Grootfootein, Wind­ of cowardly attack on schools did not High Commissioner for Refugees. opentioo in Namibia which bocomes hoek and Keetmanshoop to make come as a surprise." Of the UN ci... ilian offici.ls. 42 are effective next Fristay. arrangCJflents fOr tile main body of He said that in flCt, his school was from New Yor\c, 14 from Gene"'a, 'M, ECkhard said theTe were ,SOO the peacekeeping forces, nwnbering targeted before, in 198,S, when Frieda Iyambo fi ... e from Vienna, 16 from Jeros.-, ad ... an~ contingenu of soldiers from 4 6,SO, due to dock at Wal ... is Bay in the ~ econd week of April. The .dministrati ... e head of UN· TAG, Mr Abdou Ciss. confumed that up to four UN personnel shared hotel suites in Windhoek. He said the UN was in the process of buying prefabricaled housing. but un til the units became a... ailable, the mo ... ing into Namibi.
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