Mr Clean accused of dirty tricks

It started as a row over strippers.

Now the man key to a government crusade to clean up the exotic dancing industry in Cape Town stands accused of using dirty tactics against one of the city's top immigration lawyers.

Patric Tariq Mellet, a former political exile and ANC underground publisher who helped design the party logo, is under fire for allegedly trying to discredit an attorney representing two city strip clubs.

Mellet is a director in the Western Cape Department of Home Affairs and allegedly wrote letters - under a name almost identical to that of his wife - lashing out at attorney Gary Eisenberg.

Eisenberg had the letter analysed by a forensic linguist, who has now reported that he believes they were penned by Mellet.

The findings have been reported to senior officials at home affairs, who have yet to respond to queries.

Mellet was this year accused of waging a personal vendetta against Western Cape premier Helen Zille after a Facebook tirade in which he described her as "Mein Fuehrer Helen Zille motormouth" and likened her to apartheid-era president PW Botha.

The Democratic Alliance called for his suspension at the time.

Eisenberg runs an immigration and nationality law firm and has represented Mavericks Revue Bar and Arabesque Revue Bar and Gentlemen's Club in court battles against home affairs.

The cases relate to the legality of the clubs' foreign dancers, some of whom were jailed despite having valid work permits.

Mellet is a keen historian who blogs about slavery and is outspoken on human rights issues. His strong views feature in court, where he was accused of bias against Arabesque due to his interest in the evils of human trafficking.

But his fight with the club earned him the backing of the Minister of Home Affairs, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, who said in a report that she expected her officials to take a hard line against suspected human trafficking.

Antagonism spilt into the public domain earlier this year after a letter about Eisenberg was published in the Cape Times.

The letter, signed "Cherie Osborn" lashed out at the lawyer.

"Mr Eisenberg's main practice is legitimately more well known as an Immigration Agent practice and he has captured the news frequently for his large Exotic Dancer or Strip Club cliental [sic] base rather than helping priests and nuns with their immigration applications as projected," it said.

An online biography says Mellet is married to Cheryl Osborn.

Mellet declined to comment on the letter. "I have no comment to make on any of the issues raised," he said.

Eisenberg gave copies of the letter to linguistics expert Professor Ernst Kotze from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth.

By analysing keywords, Kotze concluded that the letter matched a collection of Mellet's writings within an error margin of less than 5%.

"In a civil case we need a preponderance of evidence to show that the likelihood of a match is very, very strong, and this is applicable in this case," said Kotze.

Eisenberg said he believed he was the victim of a campaign against exotic dancers.

"There are senior officials in the government who are behaving abominably badly. They are supposed to behave in the public interest, they are supposed to be custodians of law.

"But this is what they are actually doing. That is really what it is all about," he said.

Eisenberg replied to Osborn's letter, saying: "It is a strange, and at times upsetting, situation that I am sometimes judged for the clients I represent, as distasteful as few of them may be.

"I represent engineering companies, entrepreneurs, multinational companies specialising in business consultancy, and yes ... priests and rabbis," he said.

Home affairs has withdrawn the permits used by Mavericks and Arabesque and is preparing new regulations likely to stem the flow of exotic dancers to South Africa.

Leon Isaacson, managing director of Global Migration SA, said there was confusion over the government's new Immigration Amendment Act.

"It has been passed and signed by the president but has no effective date. There were efforts to make big changes without proper policy consultations and impact studies and this has caused uncertainty and confusion," he said.

- jordanb@sundaytimes.co.za