A Change is Gonna Come
The Death Throes of a Hated System
They were extraordinary times. Apartheid, described by the United Nations, as a Crime Against Humanity, was on its last legs. It was in every way unsustainable. Political prisoners had been freed, including the international symbol of the fight against Apartheid and national icon, Nelson Mandela, but the the political process that would replace the abomination that was Apartheid had yet to be completed. The National Party of then South African President F. W. de Klerk had no choice but to negotiate with long time enemies the African National Congress (ANC).
Nevertheless, this process had opposition from both sides of the political spectrum too. The Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC) had been weakened by infiltration and the systematic use of the death penalty by the National Party's government and courts over many years. The criminal justice system had been used by the government to punish opposition. The PAC did not support the process as it was unfolding at that time. It viewed all white people as legitimate targets because it believed that they had benefited from Apartheid and its armed wing continued its operations, including an attack that would send shock waves around the world. Atrocities were still being committed by the security services as elections loomed. But while the PAC wanted to smash Apartheid and the hated system of racist privilege that it stood for, the process had opposition from those who benefited from it and wanted to keep Apartheid, or even extent white power, such as the late Eugène Terre'Blanche and his Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB).
The Eikenhof Attack
Just over three years had passed since Mandela's release. The elections that would propel Mandela to the Presidency of South Africa were just a year away, but the nitty-gritty still had to be agreed for the revolution to be completed at the ballot box. There had been plenty of pain over many years and it had been disproportionate against the black majority. Many martyrs had given their lives – the living still bore the scars of a bestial system that had to be opposed not only through peaceful means, but also through armed struggle.
The Azanian People's Liberation Army (APLA) – the PAC's military wing – had not given up the armed struggle in March 1993. It would do so before long, but not before an operation that shocked South Africa to the core. On March 19th 1993 Norman Mitchley was driving his Volkswagen Passat along the Vereeniging road, near Eikenhof, Johannesburg. Craig Lamprecht, Norman's wife, Zandra, their son Shaun, and Shaun's friend Claire Silberbauer were passengers when they encountered a green BMW. It belonged to Mziwamadoda Mpunga, but he had been forced out of it at gunpoint by members of APLA. They opened fire on Mitchley's car. Lamprecht and Norman Mitchley survived but Silberbauer and Zandra and Shaun Mitchley were killed.
The PAC's President, Letlapa Mphahlele, expressed surprise and shock that despite APLA quickly contacting media claiming responsibility for the attack, a dreadful miscarriage of justice was allowed to occur. Opposition to the political process that would dismantle Apartheid was not limited to political parties. State terrorism and political assassination had been used to cow resistance and the judicial process was not immune either.
The ANC had given up the armed struggle and was organising as a political party, but elements within the South African Police Force at that time saw their opportunity to discredit and undermine the ANC by pinning the Eikenhof attack on them. ANC members Siphiwe Bholo, Titi Ndweni and Sipho Gavin were targeted, despite APLA's admission that it was their operation. A shameful and politically motivated and orchestrated miscarriage of justice was allowed to occur.
Confessions were coerced from the Eikenhof Three, who had also been misidentified by Mpunga. Those are two of the commonest forms of evidence that result in miscarriages of justice. South Africa was on the verge of emerging from the shadow of Apartheid, but its criminal justice system remained in the dark ages. Sadly, despite the eventual vindication of the Eikenhof Three, which occurred in an unusual manner over a decade ago, the lessons of their vindication have yet to be learned by the South African criminal justice system.
The Birth of a Travesty
The Operation
18 years ago an APLA (Azanian People's Liberation Army) operation left three people dead and two injured in an attack that would have widespread implications for South African justice. It resulted in a case that not only exposed the injustice of Apartheid courts in their death throes, but also showed that serious flaws were inherited by the post-Apartheid criminal justice system, which has so far refused to resolve it, despite a successful appeal and a finding from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) that leaves no room for doubt that the Eikenhof Three (Siphiwe Bholo, Boy Titi Ndweni and Sipho Gavin) were, as they had always insisted, entirely innocent.
On March 19th 1993 Norman Mitchley was driving his Volkswagen Passat on the Vereeniging Road, near Eikenhof. Craig Lamprecht was a passenger, along with Norman's wife Zandra, their 14 year-old son Shaun and friend Claire Silberbauer. Mziwamadoda Mpunga was driving his BMW on the same road. He was held up at gunpoint by members of APLA and it was used in the attack with AK47s that killed Silberbauer and Zandra and Shaun Mitchley. Lamprecht and Norman Mitchley were injured, but survived. The Eikenhof attack shocked South Africa, but significant facts that should have prevented a gross miscarriage of justice took damaging years to emerge.
Incredible Evidence
While I was in South Africa last year I met the Eikenhof Three and the President of the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC), Letlapa Mphahlele. Shortly after the attack confusion or misinformation reigned. While some believe that APLA did not take responsibility for its attack, Mphahlele insists that APLA swiftly claimed responsibility for the Eikenhof attack by telephoning media. This is vitally important as Bholo, Ndweni and Gavin were African National Congress (ANC) members and activists.
They were dragged into this appalling case deliberately and maliciously by a moribund police force and criminal justice system anxious to discredit and weaken the ANC. Despite a long and wretched history of unreliable identification cases in South Africa, the crux of the case that the Apartheid state in its death rattle brought against the Eikenhof Three was identification evidence. Mpunga had seen the men who took his car at gunpoint. He was the crucial 'independent' witness, but Mpunga wrongly identified three innocent men – Bholo, Ndweni and Gavin at an identification parade that was held at a police station.
Mistaken or malicious misidentification feature in many miscarriages of justice and this was well known in South Africa even at the height of Apartheid. Another major cause of wrongful convictions is coerced confessions. Both occurred in what would become one of the worst miscarriages of justice in African history, but there was another element to this case – a malevolent one. It was an APLA operation, but there were dark forces operating in South Africa in those times that wanted to blame the ANC to either derail the political process totally, or at least weaken the ANC's credibility and position in the negotiations that eventually consigned Apartheid to history. Disgracefully, South Africa's criminal justice system would be used and abused to secure that result and that continued even after apartheid had been defeated. The notorious Judge David Curlewis accepted the confessions as true and freely given and Mpunga's identification of the three as accurate. He sentenced Bholo and Gavin to death – later commuted to life imprisonment – and Ndweni to 17 years imprisonment. It was an atrocious miscarriage of justice that disgraced any court – even an Apartheid one. There was no scientific evidence whatsoever linking the Eikenhof Three to the Eikenhof attack and that would later prove crucial. The injustice continued even after the innocence of the Eikenhof Three became undeniable, but the truth eventually found an unusual way to emerge and proclaim their innocence from the rooftops.
Trustee
Andrew David Barclay (Dave), BSc, MSc, DSc, FFSSoc.
Expertise and Cases
Dave has a BSc degree with joint Honours in Chemistry and Zoology, and an MSc in Forensic Science and is a Fellow of the Forensic Science Society. He was a practising forensic scientist accredited by the UK Home Office as an authorised analyst from 1972, and from 1996 until he retired in 2005 was Head of Physical Evidence at the National Crime and Operations Faculty (NCOF), Bramshill.
NCOF is a UK wide organisation funded by the Police Service to provide expertise and operational support in the most complex crimes of violence such as rape series, stranger murders and the murders of children or vulnerable adults. During his NCOF duties Dave reviewed approximately 235 undetected murders or murder series in the UK and worldwide. It is now part of the National Police Improvement Agency.
Patron
Michael Mansfield QC
Called to the Bar in 1967 Michael Mansfield has a BA Hons. degree in History and Philosophy from Keele University before turning to law. He soon earned the respect of colleagues, mounting vigorous defences for clients. He made his name in the Angry Brigade trial in the early 1970s before establishing Tooks Court Chambers in 1984. He took silk (became a Queen’s Counsel) in 1989.
Mansfield has never shied away from controversial cases, especially where civil liberties are at stake. He has been involved in high profile cases such as Barry George – wrongly convicted of the murder of television presenter Jill Dando. He has also represented the families of victims of the Bloody Sunday shootings at the inquiry into those deaths and the family of Jean Charles de Menezes the entirely innocent Brasilian electrician shot dead by police in 2005.
At inquests he represented the families of Tom Hurndall and James Miller – journalists murdered by the Israeli army. He also represented the families of the Omagh, Lockerbie and Dublin bombings. The relatives of victims of the Marchioness disaster and families of the victims of the New Cross Fire were his clients. Mansfield represented striking miners at Orgreave and also the Newham Seven and Bradford Twelve – victims of racist attacks who defended themselves.
Founder and Director
Satish Sekar
Satish began working on justice issues in 1990. His greatest success is the incredible case of the Cardiff Five (Yusef Abdullahi, Stephen Miller, Tony Paris and the cousins John and Ronnie Acrie). His work contributed to the successful appeal. He then persuaded the authorities to look for the real killer, along with Lynette’s mother Peggy Pesticcio. His book (see below) had a great impact when it was published in 1998.
FIP Supporters
Gareth Peirce – Solicitor specialising in defence work. She has represented too many victims of miscarriages of justice to list them all. The renowned solicitor Gareth Peirce is a partner at Birnberg/Peirce. She prefers to talk about cases and issues, which is fine with us. She represents individuals subjected to rendition and torture, held in prisons in the UK on the basis of secret evidence, and interned in secret prisons abroad under regimes that continue to practice torture. She also represents people claiming to be victims of miscarriages of justice, many of which have subsequently been proven.
Clients include the Birmingham Six, Michael O'Brien, Stephen, Judith Ward, the family of Jean Charles de Menezes, and Moazzam Begg. Lesser known clients include Samuel Kulasingham and Premraj Sivalingham.
In Dispatches From the Dark Side: On Torture and the Death of Justice, which we have reviewed she looks at the British government’s involvement in torture which, if not accounted for, will destroy much of the moral and legal fabric it claims to be protecting. She also contributed a foreword for Sekar's book Fitted In: The Cardiff 3 and the Lynette White Inquiry.
Edward FitzGerald QC. - Specialising in criminal defence work he has corrected several miscarriages of justice. He represented Darren Hall (Newsagent's Three) and secured an acknowledgment from a then Mr. Justice (Sir Andrew) Collins that Timothy Evans - hanged for the murder of his baby daughter in 1950 - was innocent. Tony Poole and several others were represented by the award-winning QC.
Jonathan Jones – Jonathan was wrongly convicted of the murder of Harry and Megan Tooze. They were shot dead in their farmhouse in Llanharry in July 1993. His then girlfriend – they have since married – Cheryl believed him innocent. A weak circumstantial case resulted in conviction by majority verdict after a 55-day trial at Newport Crown Court. Jones was represented by fellow FIP supporter Stuart Hutton.
Unusually, the judge, the late Mr. Justice (Sir Richard) Rougier, wrote to Jones' QC, John Charles Rees, expressing his concern that the jury had got it wrong. The letter was made public and Jonathan's convictions were quashed on appeal in April 1996.
His was the second miscarriage of justice case reviewed by the Major Crime Review Unit, which was established in May 1999. It was later re-opened, but to date it has not been resolved by the arrest and conviction of the real perpetrator.
Cheryl Jones – Cheryl was the girlfriend of Jonathan Jones – they have since married. When he was wrongfully arrested and convicted, she stood by him, believing rightly that it was a terrible miscarriage of justice. Her parents were the victims of a callous double murder in July 1993. Cheryl campaigned for Jones and put up a reward for information leading to the conviction of the real killer.
Jones was freed by the Court of Appeal in 1996, largely due to Cheryl's efforts. Their story is an uplifting one. Several relationships break down under the strain of a miscarriage of justice. They are an inspiration and still together. Sadly, the real killer(s) of Harry and Megan Tooze have yet to be brought to justice.
David Michael – Former Detective Chief Inspector and Founder of the Metropolitan Police’s Black Police Association.
Nogah Ofer – Solicitor specialising in compensation and accountability. Clients include Michael O'Brien and 4 of the Cardiff Five.
Michael O’Brien – Victim of miscarriage of justice (11 years)
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Bob Woffinden – Author specialising in miscarriages of justice.
Steven Bird – Solicitor specialising in criminal defence. Clients include Neil Sayers.
Paul Blackburn – Victim of miscarriage of justice (25 years).
Stuart Hutton – Solicitor specialising in criminal defence. He has represented several victims of proven miscarriages of justice, including Jonathan Jones and John Actie (Cardiff Five) among others.
Raju Bhatt – Solicitor specialising in compensation and accountability. He has represented many families over inquests. He assisted Gary Mills and Tony Poole to judicially review the decision of the Criminal Cases Review Commission not to refer their convictions back to the Court of Appeal. Then Lord Chief Justice, Lord Woolf, thought that ‘almost every aspect of the prosecution was tarnished.’ The convictions were quashed on appeal in 2003.
Duncan Campbell - Duncan Campbell worked for the Guardian from 1987 to 2009 and was its crime correspondent, Los Angeles correspondent and senior correspondent. He was previously news editor of Time Out and City Limits. He is a former chairman of the Crime Reporters’ Association, presented of the BBC radio programme, Crimedesk, and is the author of a number of books on crime, including The Underworld, That was Business, This Is Personal and A Stranger and Afraid: the story of Caroline Beale. His latest book is If It Bleeds, a novel about crime reporting. He has also written for the Observer and the New Statesman and presented the BBC Radio Four programme, Bandits of the Blitz, about crime during the second world war. He is a winner of the Bar Council’s Newspaper Journalist of the Year award for his articles on victims of domestic violence who were convicted of murder.
Michelle Diskin – Sister of Barry George, the victim of a terrible miscarriage of justice.
Why are we here
Ten years ago we published Satish Sekar's acclaimed book Fitted-In: The Cardiff 3 and the Lynette White Inquiry. We hoped that it would stimulate debate on several areas of law and result in major policy reforms that would improve the performance of the criminal justice system. The murder of Lynette White was a particularly brutal murder. At the time it was the worst murder of its type in Welsh history. She sustained more than fifty stab wounds. The Cardiff Three – Yusef Abdullahi, Stephen Miller and Tony Paris had been free for more than five years. John and Ronnie Actie had been free even longer, but who would fight for justice for Lynette White?
The Redemption Project – Cardiff
This project is a collaboration with another not for profit organisation Empower-Sport Ltd, whose registration number is 06656575. This is a crime prevention project through sport. The aim is to give talented young people in danger of being lost to a life of crime wider opportunities to demonstrate their skills. Using mentors, rugby and coaching, we will show that there are better options.
The Redemption Project – Cardiff aims to not only help to prevent crime, but do so in a manner that offers positive opportunities to talented young rugby players who want to turn their lives around through the sport.
Proved Innocent – Vindication (Britain)
This is one of our most important projects. It is a humanitarian venture to highlight the lack of assistance provided to the demonstrably innocent victims of proven miscarriages of justice. The Cardiff Five (Yusef Abdullahi, John and Ronnie Actie, Stephen Miller and Tony Paris were the first to be vindicated – proved innocent of murder by the conviction of the real murderer. Despite this they did not qualify for assistance to rebuild their lives.
Proved Innocent – Vindication (Britain) explains how this happened and will suggest policy reform to enable the needs of the Cardiff Five and others who slipped through the nets to be catered for.
Just Tariffs – Protecting The Innocent
This is a major project and topical too. It details an ignored area of the tariff system. It is a crime prevention project. The main aim of Just Tariffs – Protecting The Innocent is to facilitate a system that protects society and the innocent. The project details an ignored area of the tariff system, and is a crime prevention project.
The truly guilty have no incentive to prevent miscarriages of justice from happening or take responsibility for their crimes. Just Tariffs – Protecting The Innocent will suggest a novel way of achieving both. The prevention of miscarriages of justice, especially serious ones, and persuading murderers to take responsibility for their crimes will protect society and serve a valuable humanitarian purpose.
A Sporting Chance of Aftercare
This project is another collaboration with Empower-Sport Ltd. It combines a love of sport with the humanitarian need of assisting victims of miscarriages of justice to integrate back into society through sport. They will be befriended and accompanied to sporting events to rekindle their love of sport.
If this approach succeeds, they will be further encouraged to become involved locally in grass-roots sport. A Sporting Chance of Aftercare is aimed at victims of miscarriages of justice that have been released previously, but have had difficulties integrating back into their communities and would benefit from such a scheme.