Zim can fight farmers ruling
Although a costs order of less than R200 000 was at stake, Judge Claassen
said the case was important as it involved various issues in international
relations.
15 September 2011 | ILSE DE LANGE
The Zimbabwe government was yesterday given leave to appeal against a North
Gauteng High Court ruling in favour of dispossessed Zimbabwean farmers,
despite being accused of coming to court with “hands dripping in blood”.
Judge Roger Claassen, who earlier refused the Zimbabwe government’s
application to set aside three rulings in favour of the farmers, yesterday
granted that government leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal
against his ruling.
Although a costs order of less than R200 000 was at stake, Judge Claassen
said the case was important as it involved various issues regarding
international relations.
He said it was possible that a higher court could have a different take on
the issues. Willie Spies argued on behalf of civil rights organisation
AfriForum, which assisted three of the dispossessed farmers, that the
Zimbabwe government did not come to court with clean hands, but “with hands
dripping with the blood of people who were being actively persecuted”.
He said one of the farmers involved, Mike Campbell, had already died as a
result of the injuries he sustained.
Spies pointed out that numerous judges in various courts had already ruled
in favour of the farmers, adding that it was unlikely that the Appeal Court
would intervene in a case revolving around a cost order of less than R200
000.
Judge Claassen ruled in favour of the farmers in June this year that writs
issued by the court for the seizure of Zimbabwean assets in South Africa
could not be attacked on any grounds.
He also ruled that the High Court had the jurisdiction to register rulings
by a Southern African Development Community Tribunal that Zimbabwe’s land
reform programme was racist and unlawful and that the farmers should have
been compensated for their losses.
AfriForum assisted three of the dispossessed farmers, Louis Fick, Richard
Etheredge and the late Mike Campbell, to have the SADC ruling registered in
a South African court and seize local properties owned by the Zimbabwean
government.