By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The trial of the five men accused of the murder of Bafana Bafana and Orlando Pirates goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa was delayed at the Pretoria High Court on Monday due to a new witness objecting to the broadcast of her testimony.
The witness, whose identity was concealed, brought an application on Monday that objected to the live broadcast of her testimony.
She argued that she feared for her safety.
The witness argued through the State that though she did not want her testimony to be broadcast, she was fine with pictures and videos being taken of her as she left and entered the court.
Fullview understands that the said witness was not part of the Senzo Meyiwa Netflix documentary, defence advocate Zandile Mshololo used the documentary in her arguments.
“There is no evidence that has been placed before this court to say as a result of her participating on the [Netflix documentary], this is what she has suffered. Instead, what we know is that she was paid [to take part in it].”
However it has been widely speculated that she may be one of the Khumalo sisters, Kelly or Zandi, who were present on the night of the murder in their mother’s home in Vosloorus.
The attorney representing the media, Dan Rosengarten, argued against the media blackout, saying the witness has in the past shown she’s not camera shy and has tweeted about the case.
“She has on her own volition made media statements and has publicly spoken about the matter,” he said.
Rosengarten added that the court should consider a subpoena if the witness refuses to give evidence.
A legal expert, advocate Manny Witz says the longer the trial dragged on, the higher the chances were of inconsistencies with witnesses’ testimonies. “It makes a huge difference — memories fade and witnesses forget. The longer the delays, the worse it gets for both the State and the accused.”
The matter was also postponed last week after defence advocate Sipho Ramosele said he was not feeling well.
It also encountered yet another “systematic delay” after the unavailability of interpreters.
Witz, said the unavailability of interpreters was a common problem as they were “casual workers” not contracted by the Department of Justice.
The trial is expected to continue on Wednesday after state and the defence had to file their heads of arguments and the issue will be dealt with tomorrow.