Windhoek-Namibia: The legal team representing Zimbabwe in a hearing before the Southern Arican Developing Countries (SADC) Tribunal staged a walkout on Thursday. The Tribunal is currently hearing an application made by seventy-eight(78) white farmers not to be forcefully evicted from their farms by the government of Zimbabwe.

The Tribunal was set to hear an urgent application by Advocate Jeremy Gauntlet, legal council for the farmers, that Zimbabwe was in contempt of a ruling made earlier by the tribunal. This ruling granted an order that the farmers’ may not be removed from their farms before a full hearing of arguments before the Tribunal. It further prevented the Zimbabwean Government from interfering with the 78 families and their employees on the farms. According to Gauntlet, the Zimbabwean Government was in contempt after renewed attacks on the applicants following President Mugabe’s re-election in a sham election. Mugabe was the only candidate standing for the position after the opposition leader Morgan Tsvangerai withdrew due to the political violence that swept through Zimbabwe.

The Deputy-Attorney General of Zimbabwe, Prince Machaya, opposed the application stating that he needed more time to prepare since he considered the urgent application as a separate matter. The President of the SADC Tribunal, Judge Luis Mondlane refused that the matter be postponed noting that Machaya was using delaying tactics once again.

After Judge Mondlane ruled the matter to proceed, Machay and other other members of his team walked out of the hearing after requesting to be excused. They were followed by a group of Zimbabwean diplomats from the High Commission of Zimbabwe.

The hearing continued unopposed and judgment was reserved until Friday.

The Tribunal was established in 1992 and started receiving cases in October 2007. The Tribunal is seated in Windhoek, Namibia.