Harare - Police were holding 32 activists accused of
plotting to overthrow President Robert Mugabe despite a High Court
order to release them, the state-owned Herald newspaper reported
Saturday.
Police chief spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena was quoted by the Herald
as saying the activists would remain in custody until an appeal by
the attorney general's office was heard by the Supreme Court.
'We have been advised by the attorney general's office that they
have noted an appeal against the High Court order issued on
Wednesday.
'We are still holding them in custody until the appeal is heard,'
the Herald quotes Bvudzijena as saying, noting that the appeal had
the effect of suspending a High Court order to release the accused
issued on Wednesday, which was Christmas Eve.
But Irene Petras, one of the lawyers for the activists, dismissed
Bvudzijena's claims.
'We still maintain that the police is in contempt of court. I saw
the purported appeal and it is defective for a number of reasons,
including that it has not yet been filed with the Supreme Court. It
was only served to the High Court,' Petras told Deutsche Presse-
Agentur dpa.
'The police is trying to mislead everyone about (the appeal).'
Late Wednesday, High Court judge Yunus Omerjee ordered the
immediate release of the suspects facing charges of recruiting people
to undergo military training in Botswana for the purposes of removing
Mugabe from power.
It could not be ascertained from the attorney general's office
when the appeal was made, since Omerjee's ruling was made ahead of
the Christmas holiday.
Beatrice Mtetwa, another one of the lawyers, told journalists on
Wednesday that some of the detainees were tortured during their
incarceration and were supposed to have been released to a private
hospital after Omerjee's ruling.
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