Simon Mann Faces Extradiction

Justice Rita Makarau, also dismissed Mann’s application to have the case referred to the
Supreme Court. Makarau did not give reasons for the judgment that was
delivered late yesterday afternoon. Mann’s lawyer, Jonathan Samkange, told
reporters yesterday that he was going to file an urgent appeal against both
rulings at the Supreme Court this afternoon. “I will appeal against both
judgments. I am disappointed because this was a political decision as
opposed to a judicial one. I believe this case should have gone in Mann’s
favour,” said Samkange. The defence lawyer said yesterday’s judgment was
prepared by Bharat Patel when he was still a High Court judge before his
appointment last November as acting Attorney General. Samkange said Mann’s
appeal should be dealt with afresh before a new judicial panel as Patel
could not “act as both prosecutor and judge in his own court and in his own
cause.”An officer from the Attorney General’s office is representing Equatorial
Guinea in the matter and reports to Patel who in turn liases with his
counterpart in Equatorial Guinea. As AG, Patel is a member of President
Robert Mugabe’s cabinet and an ex-officio of the Zimbabwean parliament.
Mann, a former member of Britain’s Special Air Service, has been languishing
at Chikurubi prison outside Harare waiting for his case against his
extradition to the West African country to be dealt with at the courts. The
British national has already served his full sentence after he was convicted
in 2004 for breaching Zimbabwe’s immigration and firearms laws. Mann
together with over 60 others were arrested at Harare international airport
in 2004 while allegedly on their way to stage a military coup against
President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. He denies the charge. Mann’s
lawyers have said he faces severe torture and will not have a fair trial in
Equatorial Guinea because his case is political.