The government denied a request by the Movement for Democratic Change to hire a South African lawyer Jeremy Gauntlett to represent party leader Morgan Tsvangirai in his challenge of the presidential election results.
The MDC required clearance from the Ministry of Justice to hire a lawyer from outside the country.
Reports said the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Justice argued that the legal challenge was not so complex as to require the services of a legal practitioner from outside the country because there were plenty of senior counsels in the country.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 02HARARE1453, ZIMBABWE GOVERNMENT BANS SOUTH AFRICAN LAWYER FROM
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C O N F I D E N T I A L HARARE 001453
SIPDIS
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR JFRAZER
LONDON FOR CGURNEY
PARIS FOR CNEARY
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/19/2012
SUBJECT: ZIMBABWE GOVERNMENT BANS SOUTH AFRICAN LAWYER FROM
ASSISTING MDC LEGAL CHALLENGE TO ELECTION
Classified By: Political Officer Todd Faulk for reasons 1.5 (b)
and (d)
¶1. (SBU) The June 19 edition of the independent “Daily News”
reported that the Government of Zimbabwe (GOZ) has denied MDC
President Morgan Tsvangirai’s request to have renowned South
African attorney Jeremy Gauntlett represent him in the MDC’s
legal challenge to the March presidential election.
According to the article and embassy sources, for a senior
attorney or advocate from outside the country to argue cases
in Zimbabwe, the Minister of Justice (MOJ) must grant an
exemption certificate in order for the trial to proceed. In
Gauntlett’s case, the Ministry of Justice permsec argued that
the legal challenge “is not so complex as to require the
services of a legal practitioner from outside Zimbabwe. The
country has, in fact, a number of Senior Counsels who can
effectively represent your client,” the article quoted. The
permsec also stated that the MDC should obtain a commitment
from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe for the forex to pay for
the services of the South African attorney. (Comment: The
Reserve Bank, which has a long waiting list for forex, would
most certainly not give it to the MDC. This would increase
the Zim dollar cost to the MDC by about ten times if it went
to the parallel market. End comment.)
¶2. (C) Gandi Mudzingwa, Tsvangirai’s principal assistant,
told poloff that Minister of Justice Patrick Chinamasa has
decided to make a political issue out the case. After
consulting with the MDC’s lawyers, Mudzingwa believed that
the only issue is whether or not Gauntlett is registered to
practice law in Zimbabwe. However, according to the
embassy’s political assistant, who was a practicing attorney
in Zimbabwe, the Legal Practitioners’ Act is clear on
stipulating that it is entirely up to the Justice Minister to
decide whether or not to grant an exemption to foreign
attorneys. If Gauntlett is registered here, then MOJ
permission is not necessary. However, if he is not
registered, then the most he could do is draft papers and
give free advice and instructions to the MDC’s local
attorneys. He could not sit on the bench in court, argue the
case before the judge, or be named on any documents. He
would not be entitled to legal fees under the law, either,
according to our assistant. Furthermore, registering to
practice law in Zimbabwe is a lengthy and cumbersome
process–it requires sitting for five exams–and there are
not many foreign attorneys who have done it. It is not clear
whether Gauntlett is registered in Zimbabwe, but we presume
that he is not since the MDC applied for an exemption with
the High Court.
¶3. (C) Comment: Anyone intending to pay Gauntlett for his
services in the MDC’s legal challenge is on shaky legal
ground. It might be possible for Gauntlett to agree to
provide pro bono services in the case, but given the
restrictions described above on Gauntlett’s ability to
operate in Zimbabwe, he may be more apt to offer limited free
advice in any case. The MDC’s options appear limited since
there are not many South African attorneys registered in
Zimbabwe, and local senior counsels are subject to
intimidation and harassment. Since the MOJ must grant
exemptions to foreign attorneys on a case-by-case basis, and
for only a limited period of time, the GOZ could repeatedly
use this tactic to tilt in its favor the legal challenge
playing field. End comment.
SULLIVAN
(290 VIEWS)
