26
February 2010
277/08
[2010] ZASCA 5
The Citizen v McBride
Court
rules in McBride's favour - 27 February
The Citizen newspaper was wrong to call Robert
McBride a murderer and criminal, because he had been
granted amnesty for his apartheid-era crimes, the Supreme
Court of Appeal (SCA) ruled on Friday. The SCA held that
that it had not been alleged in the articles that McBride
had been involved in illegal activities with gun running in
Mozambique, but only that there were facts indicating that
he may have been involved in such gun dealing. To this
extent the newspaper's appeal was successful. But, referring
to McBride's involvement in the bombing of the Magoo's
Bar/Why Not Restaurant in Durban in which three female
patrons were killed, the court said once amnesty had been
granted to McBride he could no longer be branded a criminal
and murderer. This is in terms of the offences in respect of
which amnesty had been granted to him. "The granting of
amnesty was an attempt to shape the future not to undo the
past. The statement in the editorials and articles that the
respondent is a murderer is therefore false", the
judgment read. - News24
website
Newspaper
yet to decide on McBride - 2 March
The Citizen is considering a possible appeal to the
Constitutional Court against a Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA)
decision in favour of Robert McBride, the newspaper said on
Tuesday. - IOL website
Absa
awaits court ruling on R600m claim - 21 February
Rico Bernert, the businessman who believes his claim against
Absa has now ballooned to R600 million, is still waiting for
the Supreme Court of Appeal judgment on his case. Five judges
heard the appeal by Absa on Thursday and reserved their
judgment. The claim includes interest and legal costs. He has
fought the bank for 11 years. - Business
Report website
Court
releases illegally detained asylum seeker - 26 February
South Africa's Supreme Court of Appeal ordered the Department
of Home Affairs on 24 February 2010 to immediately release an
Ethiopian asylum seeker from "unlawful" detention
after he had languished in repatriation centres for over nine
months. Costs were also awarded against the Minister of
Home Affairs and the Director-General of the Department in an
order that Gina Snyman, of the Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR)
Refugee and Migrant Rights Project, termed a "scathing
rebuke". LHR requested that the identity of the man
not be disclosed for fear of retribution should he be deported
to Ethiopia. - IRIN News
website