Namibia: Authorities must ensure a fair trial for Caprivi defendants, Amnesty urges

News Release Issued by the International Secretariat of Amnesty
International
AI INDEX: AFR 42/005/2003 30 October 2003

As the treason trial of 122 defendants, at least 70 of whom Amnesty
International considers to be prisoners of conscience, resumed in Namibia
on 27 October, the organisation is urging the Namibian authorities to
ensure that the trials proceed in line with international standards of
fairness.

"Since being detained in 1999, the defendants have been subject to a
catalogue of violations: many have been tortured, subject to harsh
conditions of detention and denied access to lawyers, their families and
medical treatment for periods. The onus is on the Namibian authorities to
ensure a fair trial now that the defendants are finally having their cases
heard", an Amnesty International spokesperson said today.

The defendants were arrested and accused of high treason, murder and other
offences in connection with the secessionist Caprivi uprising of August
1999. Most of them were subjected to torture and ill-treatment, and harsh
prison conditions. They were also denied access to lawyers, medical
treatment and their families for approximately three weeks. The defendants
have remained in custody for the past four years and have been waiting for
the resumption of their trial since June 2002. Some appear to have been
arrested based solely on their actual or perceived non-violent support for
the political opposition in the region, their ethnic identity or their
membership in certain organizations.

On 16 October 2003, one of the defendants, Oscar Luphalwezi, died at the
Katima Mulilo state hospital while in police custody. This brings to 12
the total number of treason trial defendants who have died in police
custody since 1999. A copy of Oscar Luphalwezi's death certificate issued
on 17 October indicated that he had died from "severe malaria". Amnesty
International is concerned that some of the illnesses which preceded the
deaths of the 12 defendants may have been aggravated by unsanitary prison
conditions and medical neglect. Soon after his arrest in 1999, Oscar
Luphalwezi was severely tortured while in police custody and denied
medical treatment for six days.

The Namibian authorities have a responsibility to ensure respect for
international standards for fairness and independence in the
administration of justice and to end torture. They must ensure that all
statements extracted by torture or ill-treatment will not be used as
evidence in court, in accordance with Namibia's obligations under the
United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or
Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). The Namibian authorities are also
obliged under the CAT to take effective measures to investigate all
allegations of torture and ill-treatment promptly, thoroughly and
impartially, make the results of the investigation public and bring the
suspected perpetrators to justice.

Amnesty International is calling on the Namibian authorities to
immediately and unconditionally release all prisoners of conscience and
ensure that the remaining defendants are tried in a fair manner.

BACKGROUND

Following an armed attack launched by the secessionist group, the Caprivi
Liberation Army, on government forces and buildings on 2 August 1999 in
the Caprivi region of north-eastern Namibia, the Namibian government
declared a State of Emergency and detained over 300 people on suspicion of
participating in the attack, sympathizing with the secessionists or
assisting them to plan or launch the attacks. 122 of the defendants
remained in custody charged with high treason, murder and other offences.

In August 2003, Amnesty International released a report "Namibia: Justice
delayed is justice denied - The Caprivi treason trial" which detailed the
violations of the Caprivi defendants' pretrial rights. (You can read the
full report online at http://amnesty-news.c.tep1.com/maabBTFaa1IsJbd5AQwb/)

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