JOHANNESBURG: A South African model who was allegedly attacked by Zimbabwe’s first lady has filed court papers challenging the government’s decision to grant Grace Mugabe diplomatic immunity, a lawyer said Thursday.
The wife of President Robert Mugabe allegedly attacked a 20-year-old model Gabriella Engels with an electrical extension cord at a hotel in Johannesburg where the couple’s two sons were staying.
The attack left Engels with cuts on her head and forehead. She has filed an assault charge against the 52-year-old Grace Mugabe.
South Africa’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said at the weekend that it had granted Mugabe immunity allowing her to leave the country.
Engels and AfriForum, a civil rights group which helps victims of crime, filed an injunction asking the court to annul the minister’s decision.
“The (foreign affairs) minister misinterpreted the law. She applied the wrong principles,” AfriForum lawyer Willie Spies told AFP.
They are seeking an order to set aside Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane’s decision “recognizing the immunities and privileges” of Grace Mugabe, according to court documents seen by AFP.
They are also asking the court to declare that the diplomatic immunity decision “does not confer immunity from prosecution.”
A hearing into the case will start on Sept. 19, said Spies.
Grace Mugabe was supposed to have reported to the police to make a statement about the allged incident, but did not.
Police Minister Fikile Mbalula then said “a red alert” had been sent out to border police, and “she is not somebody who has been running away.”
However, Mugabe flew out of South Africa on a pre-dawn flight on a presidential jet on Sunday. Hours later, the Foreign Ministry announced that it had granted her immunity.
On Wednesday, South African lawmakers heckled Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa as he answered a question in Parliament on the Grace Mugabe debacle.
He said the decision to grant her immunity was taken in line with “internationally-recognized immunity regulations” and admitted it was “the first time we have utilized this type of convention.”
Model challenges Grace Mugabe’s immunity
Model challenges Grace Mugabe’s immunity
US might keep or might sell oil seized near Venezuela, Trump says
- “If he wants to do something, if he plays tough, it’ll be the last time he’s ever able to play tough,” he said
PALM BEACH, Florida: US President Donald Trump said on Monday it would be smart for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to leave power, and the United States could keep or sell the oil it had seized off the coast of Venezuela in recent weeks.
Trump’s pressure campaign on Maduro has included a ramped-up military presence in the region and more than two dozen military strikes on vessels allegedly trafficking drugs in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near the South American nation. At least 100 people have been killed in the attacks.
Asked if the goal was to force Maduro from power, Trump told reporters: “Well, I think it probably would... That’s up to him what he wants to do. I think it’d be smart for him to do that. But again, we’re gonna find out.”
“If he wants to do something, if he plays tough, it’ll be the last time he’s ever able to play tough,” he said.
“He’s no friend to the United States. He’s very bad. Very bad guy. He’s gotta watch his ass because he makes cocaine and they send it into the US“
In addition to the strikes, Trump has previously announced a “blockade” of all oil tankers under sanctions entering and leaving Venezuela. The US Coast Guard started pursuing an oil tanker in international waters near Venezuela on Sunday, in what would be the second such operation this weekend and the third in less than two weeks if successful.
“Maybe we will sell it, maybe we will keep it,” Trump said when asked what would happen with the seized oil, adding it might also be used to replenish the United States’ strategic reserves.
