Trial Report: Thirty-Six

This report covers the period Friday November 17 - Thursday November 23, 2000

The court did not sit on Friday November 17, nor on Tuesday November 21, 2000.

Monday November 20

Judge Willie Hartzenberg ruled that the State may not bring an application for the testimony of Roger Buffham to be heard on commission in England. In a written judgment, Hartzenberg said that after perusing the statement made by Buffham to the Office of Serious Economic Offences, he was of the opinion that while Buffham's testimony might be useful to the State case, it was not necessary, and could not justify the enormous cost to taxpayers of taking the proceedings to England.

In his statement, Buffham says he met Basson and Jan Lourens at an exhibition of security equipment in London, in which his company, Contemporary Design Systems, was taking part. Afterwards, he sold them an aviation security system and later still, Lourens bought NATO-design bomb disposal suits from him. Albeit with difficulty, he claims to have obtained export permits for all the equipment he supplied and regarded doing business with Lourens and Basson as a "great opportunity" to sell security intelligence products to the South African government. Sales included 15 diviner systems, surveillance decoders (paid for by Lourens in cash) and an eavesdropping system supplied through Bernard Zimmer's Luxembourg company, ABC Import/Export.

Basson said he supplied Basson with copies of design disks for all the products which his company, Contemporary Systems Design (CSD) made. According to the judgment, Buffham was "rather vague" when asked what products these were. Buffham specifically denied selling CAMs, chemical/explosive alarms, a specialised lathe, explosive moulds, an explosive mixer and sophisticated laboratory equipment to Basson. He said he had supplied Basson with a report on research conducted on production of security paper, was introduced to Wilfred Mole by Basson and allowed his bank account to be used to move vast amounts of money from Switzerland to England to Luxembourg, for which he received 1% commission.

Buffham denies that four payments into his bank account of �100 000, �44 935, �44 996 and �65 000 could have been, as Basson claims, in respect of a data base for chemical and biological warfare, and says he provided software to Basson only in respect of explosives management.

The judge noted that while Buffham indicated at the end of his statement that he was prepared to cooperate with the investigators, and would be willing to testify in court on condition that he had "endorsed and notarised" assurances about his personal safety and protection of his rights outside the jurisdiction of the British courts, he had now rejected such assurances and appeared "thoroughly unwilling to testify". It is clear, said the judge, that Buffham has agendas of his own, and there is a strong possibility that he would not be completely frank with the court as a witness.

In his ruling Hartzenberg noted that if the court were to go to England, the State would have to send two advocates, a policeman and probably forensic auditor Hennie Bruwer. The defence team would include two advocates and an attorney. The cost of this exercise, and of obtaining a court record, would be considerable. Furthermore, taking the hearings to the UK would prolong the trial, already under way for 13 months, and the accused would not be able to attend proceedings. Given that Buffham's evidence was not necessary, the prejudice to the accused was a prominent consideration, and no letter of request for a commission in the UK would be issued.

The first witness of the day was Roland Hunter, currently chief financial director of the Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Council, who was a National Serviceman from January 1982 until his arrest on treason charges on December 8, 1983. He began his national service as a guard at the Zanza Building, Pretoria, where he was recruited for Military Intelligence's Directorate Special Tasks. Colonel Cor van Niekerk was his commanding officer, and in time, Hunter was placed in charge of all administration and the payroll of Operation Mila, the SADF's covert support for the Mozambican rebel movement, Renamo.

According to Hunter, between 45 and 60 tons of supplies were airlifted to Mozambique every month. Equipment ranged from pens and stationery to arms and ammunition - either of foreign origin or with South African identification marks removed prior to despatch.

Hunter testified about his knowledge of the investigation into the murder of former Renamo secretary general - Orlando Christina and about his role in passing information to the ANC. He was particularly tasked with providing the ANC with information about the supplies sent to Renamo.

Note: Basson is charged with conspiracy to murder the five men who were suspects in the murder of Orlando Christina. He is also charged with defeating the ends of justice through the creation of two dockets on the murder of Christina, the one docket which would stay with the South African Police indicated that those responsible for the murder could not be identified. The second docket which identified the suspects was handed over the Renamo leadership and resulted in the above deaths. This was originally a charge of defeating the ends of justice but was changed to a charge of assault with intent. Basson is also charged with Conspiracy to murder Roland Hunter. Basson is alleged by the state to have arranged that Daan Goosen would supply him with a snake and snake poison, separately. The plan was to inject Hunter with the toxin and then kill the snake at the scene so that it would appear as if Hunter had been killed by the snake. Before the operation could be carried out, Hunter was arrested by the security police and charged with espionage.

The next witness was Charles Lotz, retired warrant-officer with the East Rand Murder & Robbery Squad. He testified about his role in the investigation into the murder of Orlando Christina. Lotz was one of the police officers who was responsible for the interrogation of Renamo members at the farm where Christina was murdered. Lotz said that three days after their arrival at the farm, the investigators and suspects were told to move to what turned out to be a well-equipped military camp nearby, where Bonaventura Bomba was to be interrogated. This followed an unexplained explosion during the night at the first venue. Lotz was informed that Basson (who he had seen at the farm) had been given orders from "higher up" that the entire murder and investigation was to be kept quiet, and that no charges would be brought against the assassins, as it would create enormous embarrassment for the government if the extent of support for Renamo became public knowledge.

Lotz said Basson and an unidentified person drove to the new venue in a closed panel van, in which Lotz was told Bomba was being transported. On arrival at the base, the doors to what appeared to Lotz to be a custom-made vehicle, designed for transporting detainees, were opened and Lotz saw a light skinned man with a large build inside, lying on his back, his feet shackled , his arms stretched out above his head and his wrists tied to something in the vehicle. The man, whom Lotz was told was Bomba, was released by Basson and taken to a room in the domestic quarters behind the farmhouse. He was made to lie on an iron bed, spread-eagled and bound hand and foot.

Lotz said the policemen took turns to interrogate Bomba and even after he had confessed to the murder he was instructed by Basson to continue the interrogation.

Although his name is among the 32 listed at the end of a Top Secret report recommending the elimination of the Cristina assassins, the first time Lotz saw or knew anything about the document was in early 1997, when it was shown to him by former Special Investigation Team members [a police investigating unit formerly attached to the office of the Assistant Attorney General]. He said the South African Police investigation diary, also found in Basson's trunks, along with the original police photo album of the Cristina murder scene, does not even come close to reflecting what actually happened.

In cross examination Adv. Cilliers said that Basson had been at the murder scene to assist in tending to people who had been injured in a faction fight which broke out after the murder of Christina and that he played no role in the interrogation. Lotz disputes this.

The final witness of the day was Robert Fox, who previously testified on September 7, 2000. Fox testified that he had assisted in removing Christina's body from the farm after his murder and that he had attended to the relocation of Renamo members. In cross examination Cilliers established that Fox had been involved in the theft of SADF property, Fox admitted his involvement and said he had admitted it to his superior officer at the time and had been punished.

Wednesday November 22, 2000

The first witness was Cor Van Niekerk who was warned against self-incrimination on charges 36-39, which concern the murder of Renamo secretary-general Orlando Cristina. He was specifically warned in terms of the charge relating to obstruction of justice.

Van Niekerk joined the Directorate Special Tasks (DST) in 1979. DST fell under the command of the Chief of Staff Intelligence. DST was divided into two sections: the Western Theatre which provided support to Unita in Angola and the Eastern Theatre which provided support to Renamo. Van Niekerk headed the Eastern Theatre. He told the court that DST's annual budget in the mid-80s was around R300-million a year, of which Renamo's share, at its peak, was between R12-million and R14-million. Van Niekerk was involved in support of Renamo from 1980, when it began. The support was four-pronged: military, political, financial and sociological.

Van Niekerk named the bases at which Renamo members were trained and housed as Savong and Zobo City, both near Phalaborwa, St Miele in the Northern Transvaal, Entabeni near Louis Trichardt and the adjoining farms Klapperbos and Vofal, north of Pretoria. Not all the bases were used at the same time. Renamo president Afonso Dlakhama lived at times at Savong and at the other bases.

Van Niekerk has studied the document drawn up by Roland Hunter and confirmed that it is an accurate reflection of how DST operated. (Details of Hunter's testimony can be found in the previous weekly report).

Van Niekerk said he was on leave on April 17, 1983, when Christina was murdered and only visited the farm where the investigation was being conducted once the investigation was underway. On his first hour-long visit, Van Niekerk encountered Colonel Greyling, head of DST's communications section, as well as members of the East Rand Murder & Robbery Squad, and Basson. He did not know what Basson's role was, or why he was there.

Van Niekerk said it was the strict policy of the SADF that no documents were to be generated regarding the Christina murder since it was too sensitive and had the potential of creating embarrassment for the government, which up to that point had consistently denied any support for Renamo or that any Renamo members were resident in South Africa.

The "elimination report" was seen by Van Niekerk for the first time in 1997, although his is the first name that appears at the end of it. He cannot remember if he first saw it before or after Basson's arrest, or how it came to his notice. However, his understanding of how the investigation was conducted, coincides with the details in the report, although there are "large chunks" of it that were not previously known to him. Van Niekerk said the "elimination" report was clearly drawn up by someone who had intimate knowledge of Operation Mila, but said the compiler did not appear to have been "in touch with reality". Van Niekerk said there was never any doubt that Renamo would murder the Christina suspects, and he can thus see no reason for such recommendations to be set out in writing. (Note: the prosecution argues that Basson is the author of this document).

Van Niekerk told the court that the suspects in the murder of Christina were handed over to Renamo to be court marshaled. He assisted in locating avenue, a remote hut in the Caprivi strip, where the trial would take place. Van Niekerk, a doctor (who he thought was Philip Mijburgh) and other SADF members went along and took with them the necessary equipment to dispose of the bodies from an aircraft, were they to be executed. The five suspects were executed and their bodies thrown into the sea.

The prosecution then turned to the conspiracy to murder Roland Hunter. Van Niekerk who was Hunter's commanding officer in 1983, was made aware that "highly sensitive" and vital information was being given to the ANC. Hunter was identified as the culprit, but proof had to be obtained and his ANC contacts identified. Both Van Niekerk personally and the SADF leadership were faced with a dilemma. The evidence gathered against Hunter warranted charges of high treason and espionage, but in order to bring him to trial, information would be released into the public domain which could cause irreparable harm to the government. Van Niekerk was ordered to explore all possible options to find a solution. He approached then Transvaal attorney-general Don Brunette about the chances of holding the trial in camera, but was advised against this, and told that he should rather negotiate with Hunter and try to make a deal with him, whereby he would plead guilty to lesser charges, thus obviating the need for any evidence to be led.

Another possibility explored by Van Niekerk was that Hunter should disappear without trace. To this end, he consulted Basson, at his home in Aries Street, Waterkloof. He did not tell Basson who was involved, but asked if there was a way to achieve this objective. Basson said Mamba venom could be used. Van Niekerk said the conversation with Basson was brief, and as far as he is aware, the Mamba plan was never considered. Hunter agreed to make a deal, pleading guilty to illegal possession of classified documents and receiving a five-year sentence. The documents he had stolen, as well as his own notes about DST operations which he intended using in his defence, were never made public.

Van Niekerk said he could recall three doctors having been involved in the Christina ,murder investigation, Basson, Philip Mijburgh and Hennie Bester.

During cross examination Adv. Cilliers said it was absurd to suggest that Basson was involved in the decision to hand over the suspects in the Christina murder to Renamo for elimination. He was not in the DST chain of command, and clearly, this decision must have been taken by the Chief of the SADF and Chief of Staff Intelligence. Van Niekerk said it was the Chief of Staff Intelligence who insisted that the court martial should not take place on South African soil, and Basson had no part in making arrangements for the procedure. The request for a 7 Medical Battalion doctor to be present at the court martial, was made by DST. To thus suggest that Basson was part of a conspiracy to cover-up the fate of the Cristina killers, and in so doing, guilty of obstructing justice, was also absurd, said Cilliers, since the decision to hold a court martial appeared to have been taken long before the document was drawn up on May 8, 1983. For the State to allege that Basson incited DST to murder, or that he, a mere commandant in 7 Medical Battalion, could incite the Chief of Staff Intelligence to commit murder, or to conspire with the SADF Chief to do so, was nonsense.

Basson formally denies any involvement in any recommendations regarding the fate of Cristina's killers, and this would have been "totally outside his field of expertise". He also denies that he compiled the "elimination" document.

The next witness was Peet Viljoen, SAP member from 1969 to 1994, when he retired as a brigadier. Viljoen was one of the East Rand Murder and Robbery Squad policemen involved in the Christina murder investigation. During his testimony Viljoen said that he had seen Basson at the location where the investigation had taken place and that Basson had been present during an interrogation. He said that the document referring to the elimination of the suspects was not a typical police document. In cross-examination, Cilliers put it to Viljoen that he was clearly unable to say with certainty what Basson's role or involvement in the Cristina probe was. Viljoen confirmed that the medical staff changed from time to time.

Peet Viljoen was followed on the witness stand by his brother, Gerrit Viljoen who evidence was similar to that of his brother.

Thursday November, 23

The first witness of the day was Paul Heyns, who was a national serviceman with the Reconnaissance Unit in 1982/83, then posted to Special Forces counter-intelligence under Colonel Johan Theron.

At some point, Heyns was told by Theron they had to go to 1 Military Hospital to meet Basson and pick up someone. At the hospital, a light-skinned or mulatto man was brought from the ICU and handcuffed to Heyns until they boarded an aircraft at Air Force Base Zwartkops. Heyns says the man was difficult to control, pulling at the handcuffs and spitting in his face. He had no bandage, dressing or visible wound on his neck. The captive was fully conscious and appeared to be acting normally. Before leaving the hospital, Basson asked him what day it was, and he answered correctly. The original plan was that Heyns would accompany the prisoner on the flight to Bloemfontein, but the pilot assured him this would not be necessary. Heyns never saw or heard anything about the man again.

He confirmed that he was an unwilling and extremely reluctant witness, and testified only because he had been forced to do so.Cross-examination was brief during which Heyns said he could not remember the date of the incident. He was also asked which language Basson had spoken to the man, Heyns said he thought English had been used. (Note: previous witnesses have testified that the suspects in the Christina murder spoke only Portuguese).

The next witness was to be Magdele Jaeckel who would have testified about chemical interrogation. Her evidence was not heard when the Judge sustained an objection from the defence that she would not be able to testify about the specific incident of chemical interrogation for which Basson is charged. The only charge against Basson concerning chemical interrogation is Charge 37, which relates to the Cristina investigation. The indictment names Basson as a member of an exclusive team of medical experts who carried out chemical interrogations, during which no one else was allowed to be present except those involved in the interrogations. Cillier's objection extended to the testimony of the two witnesses scheduled to follow Jeackel. After argument by both the defence team and the prosecutor the judge ruled that the State would not be allowed to present testimony on chemical interrogation except as it might relate directly to the Cristina charges.

The prosecutor then called Dr Phil Meyer, who qualified as a doctor in 1980 and served in the SADF from 1981 to 1989. From 1981 to 1984 he was at 1 Military Hospital and spent 1985 with 7 Medical Battalion at Speskop, Special Forces Headquarters. During 1983 and 1984, Meyer worked in the casualty department at 1 Military Hospital and is aware that the hospital included a "sensitive" ward to which access was restricted. In the old building, this was Ward 25, while in the new building, it was Ward 15. When he moved from 1 Military Hospital to Special Forces Headquarters, he was involved in the administration and air supply of Unita in Angola. Medical supplies for Unita were packed at Speskop.

The Judge did not allow Meyer to give evidence about a chemical interrogation in which he was involved. Meyer testified that he had spent time in the operational area in Angola from 1986 but that he had never seen or heard of NBC suits being provided to Unita. He said he was in a position that would have made it likely for him to have heard if Unita had such equipment. During cross examination Adv Cilliers said that it was unlikely that Meyer would have seen an NBC suit or heard of one. He said that there was so little difference between normal military uniforms and an NBC suit that Meyer may not have noticed if a soldier had been brought for medical care whilst wearing part of an NBC suit.

This report has been prepared by Chandré Gould and Marlene Burger. Chandré  Gould is a research associate at the Centre for Conflict Resolution working on the Chemical and Biological Warfare Research Project. Marlene Burger is monitoring the trial  as part of the CCR Chemical and Biological Warfare Research Project. The Chemical and Biological Warfare Research Project is funded by the Ford Foundation, the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and the Norwegian Government.

Centre for Conflict Resolution, UCT, Private Bag, Rondebosch, 7701, South Africa Tel: (27) 21-4222512 Fax: (27) 21-4222622 Email: [email protected]