The Supreme Court of Appeal will hear an application on Friday for leave to appeal a ruling that South Africa must prosecute Zimbabwean officials accused of crimes against humanity.
The National Prosecuting Authority and the SA Police Service are seeking leave to appeal a ruling by the High Court in Pretoria last May compelling it to prosecute the Zimbabweans officials if they ever set foot in South Africa.
The previous court action was brought by the Southern African Litigation Centre and the Zimbabwean Exiles’ Forum.
They had asked the court to review and set aside a decision by the National Directorate of Public Prosecutions and the SA Police Service not to investigate Zimbabwean officials linked to the alleged torture.
The offences under scrutiny included an alleged raid by high-ranking Zimbabwean officials at the headquarters of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in South Africa in 2007. The MDC claimed its members were detained and continually tortured.