IT will be well into the New Year before the matter of the State versus alleged rhino horn trader Dumisani Gwala and his co-accused Aubrey Dlamini and Wiseman Makeba is ready to proceed to trial.
At the time of their arrests in 2014, Gwala was believed to have been involved in around 80% of the illegal rhino horn trade in KZN.
The Ngwelezana Regional Court on Friday heard that all evidence had now been handed over to the defence attorneys, one of whom arrived wearing an eye patch as a result of an ‘accident’ just days before and who are the latest in a slew of lawyers to be hired in defence of the accused.
The matter has been plagued with delays as new attorneys have been hired days before the matter appears in court, only to plead leniency as they were not adequately prepared to represent their clients fairly.
After a brief conferral at the instruction of Magistrate Shandu, both prosecution and defence agreed on a date where the court would again sit, and set a pre-trial conference date.
The matter was rescheduled for 25 November, at which time pre-trial dates would be decided and the matter would proceed barring any further delays.
A senior prosecutor who spoke on condition of anonymity said the magistrate had no choice but to allow the postponements, as the justice system was designed to ensure that any accused receive appropriate and adequate opportunity to defend him/herself.
‘But the magistrate can grow weary of the tactics eventually and put his foot down,’ the prosecutor said.
‘He can then ensure the matter proceeds to trial by denying further postponement applications.’
Drama unfolds
Outside the courtroom meanwhile, a group of dancers had gathered in a public display of solidarity for the fight against rhino poaching.
The group, which consisted of schoolchildren, cannot be named at request of the caregiver, as they were approached by a school principal and a man who identified himself as a member of the ANC, threatening to lay complaints against the school the children attend, as they were not in class.
The caregiver told the ZO and both irate gentlemen that the children present were writing tests, but had no scheduled papers on the day.
‘These 15 wildlife ambassadors travelled more than two hours to the court in support of saving rhinos,’ said Saving the Wild activist Jamie Joseph, who has followed the Gwala’s arrest and court proceedings keenly.
‘They were peacefully standing waiting for court to begin when they were harassed by a man claiming to be a member of the ANC,’ she said.
‘By then court staff were standing in front of the peaceful group, glaring at them as if they were criminals.
Joseph and Zululand Observer journalists were also barred from taking photographs inside the court premises.
Henning de Wet of the DA was also at court.
‘We call on communities to stand together and support conservation and civil society organisations in their fights against poaching and trafficking, which is a vital part of our economy,’ De Wet said.
‘We cannot afford to turn a blind eye and take our wildlife for granted. We must ensure that government does not treat this crisis lightly and any leniency will only allow these heinous crimes to flourish unchecked.’
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