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DE RUEHSA #0684/01 0961543
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R 061543Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY PRETORIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8031
INFO RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE
RUEHUJA/AMEMBASSY ABUJA 1317
RUEHTN/AMCONSUL CAPE TOWN 6737
RUEHDU/AMCONSUL DURBAN 0857
RUEHJO/AMCONSUL JOHANNESBURG 9084
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRETORIA 000684 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KDEM PGOV PREL SF
SUBJECT: STATE DROPS CHARGES AGAINST ZUMA 
 
PRETORIA 00000684  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
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Summary 
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¶1. (U)  The legal saga surrounding African National Congress 
(ANC) leader, and future South African President, Jacob Zuma 
continued on April 6 as the National Prosecuting Authority 
(NPA) dropped its case against the former Deputy President. 
Acting NPA Director of Public Prosecution Mokotedi Mpshe 
concluded that clandestine tapes recently acquired by the NPA 
through Zuma's legal team shows that the state politically 
interfered in the legal process to bring charges against 
Zuma.  The NPA charged Zuma with fraud, corruption, money 
laundering, and racketeering in December 2007, but the state 
has been investigating allegations surrounding the former 
Deputy President for nearly 8 years.  Mpshe said that given 
the evidence of the tapes, it is neither "possible nor 
desirable" for the NPA to pursue the prosecution of Zuma and 
others.  End Summary. 
 
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The State Drops Its Case 
------------------------ 
 
¶2. (U)  The NPA on April 6 dropped its criminal case against 
Jacob Zuma.  Mpshe announced, "It is with great regret that I 
cannot see my way clear to assure the nation that there has 
been no interference in this case."  Mpshe read a prepared 
statement for roughly thirty minutes, describing in detail 
how the case against Zuma had to be thrown out because 
"painful facts" have "serious implications for the integrity 
and independence of the NPA."  The "painful facts" included 
transcripts of clandestinely acquired tapes of conversations 
between the former Director of the Directorate of Special 
Operations Leonard McCarthy and former NPA chief Bulelani 
Ngcuka that Mpshe says demonstrate how the state politically 
interfered to bring charges against Zuma.  The tapes were 
submitted to the NPA by Zuma's legal team as a way to show 
how the former Deputy President is the victim of a political 
conspiracy.  Mpshe in his remarks read excerpts from the 
transcripts and pointed specifically to McCarthy's comments, 
saying that "his (McCarthy's) conduct ... represents an 
intolerable abuse and manipulation of the legal process." 
McCarthy and Ngcuka reportedly are heard on the tapes 
discussing the timing of when the state would file formal 
charges against Zuma, questioning to bring charges before or 
after the ANC's 2007 party congress.  (Note:  Some legal 
experts have pointed out that questioning the timing of 
charges is common practice in many legal situations.  End 
Note.)  The two officials also are heard weighing whether or 
not charges would benefit former President Thabo Mbeki. 
However, Mpshe in his remarks did not make any reference to 
Mbeki and there remains no conclusive evidence of Mbeki's 
involvement in the case against Zuma.  Given the transcripts, 
Mpshe concluded: 
 
-- The conduct between McCarthy and Ngcuka strains the NPA's 
sense of "justice and propriety" and makes it unconscionable 
for the NPA to continue with its prosecution of Zuma. 
 
-- The conduct suggests there was an illegitimate purpose 
from the state not related to the facts of the case. 
 
-- The conduct makes it neither "possible nor desirable" for 
the NPA to pursue the prosecution of Zuma and others. 
 
¶3. (U)  Mpshe said the NPA would be subject to an independent 
review of its actions related to the case and he acknowledged 
that the state had lost credibility because of its role in 
Qthat the state had lost credibility because of its role in 
the prosecution.  Mpshe did not make any reference to the 
guilt or innocence of Zuma, nor did he state whether the 
state had future plans to re-file charges against the ANC 
leader.  In addition, Mpshe gave no indication of whether 
McCarthy, Ngcuka, or anyone else would be prosecuted for 
illegal interference and manipulation of the legal process. 
(Note:  There also was no mention of Schabir Shaik, Zuma's 
business associate, whose conviction in 2005 of bribing Zuma 
led to his firing as Deputy President.  Shaik was released on 
medical parole last month, and current President Kgalema 
Motlanthe has recommended that the state look into the 
decision to release Shaik.  However, the dropping of the 
state's case against Zuma may mean that Shaik never goes back 
to prison even if his health improves.  End Note.) 
 
 
PRETORIA 00000684  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶4. (U)  Opposition reaction to Mpshe's statements was swift. 
Poloffs met with Congress of the People leader Mvume Dandala, 
Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Helen Zille, and Independent 
Democrats leader Patricia De Lille, each of whom gave 
impromptu press interviews outside the NPA's headquarters. 
Dandala reiterated his belief that Zuma must be prosecuted. 
De Lille, who in the late 1990s brought to light the arms 
deal scandal, decried "how many years" and "how much work" 
had been wasted by Mpshe's decision to drop the charges. 
Zille pointed to how the NPA, a state agency empowered by the 
Constitution, has been undermined by both the Mbeki and the 
Zuma factions of the ANC.  She vowed that she was working 
with the DA's legal team to find a way to ensure Zuma goes to 
court to account for the charges against him.  She promised 
the DA would file a case "in the very near future."  She also 
decried that political party factions are targeting other 
factions within the government to the "detriment of the 
state."  (Note:  Zille at one point nearly got into a fight 
with celebrating ANC supporters outside the NPA.  She pointed 
to a sign one of the supporters was carrying with the ANC's 
slogan of "Working Together We Can Do More."  Zille yelled at 
the supporters that the sign should say either "Working 
Together We Can Do More Crime" or "Working Together We Can Do 
More Damage."  She had to be restrained by her bodyguards. 
End Note.)  Local press reports speculate that the opposition 
will work together to file a court case against Zuma. 
 
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Comment 
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¶5. (SBU)  This in many ways is one of the saddest days for 
South Africa even in the face of supposed "Zuma vindication." 
 It is sad because important questions about the country's 
elected leaders and their business interests may never be 
answered in a court of law and it is sad because the tapes of 
McCarthy and Ngcuka show that both officials tested the 
bounds of government ethics -- to say nothing of the fact 
that the National Intelligence Agency reportedly had a role 
in taping McCarthy and Ngcuka in the first place.  The 
decision permanently removes any doubt (if any remained) that 
Zuma will be South Africa's fourth President in two weeks. 
Yet, the decision also may threaten to taint a Zuma 
presidency even before it begins.  The dropping of charges 
shows the extent to which state institutions such as the NPA 
and the Directorate of Special Operations in South Africa 
have been politicized during the past several years.  There 
already are questions over whether Zuma will keep 
institutions politicized to serve his agenda.  Second, the 
decision leaves unsaid whether the state will seek 
prosecution of Zuma, McCarthy, or anyone else in the future. 
Without knowing who is guilty or not, there may never be 
punishment for those who benefited from the illicit arms deal 
and there will always be questions about Mbeki's role in the 
state's case against Zuma.   Third, and most importantly, the 
decision says nothing about Zuma's guilt or innocence.  Not 
knowing Zuma's guilt or innocence is likely to continue 
causing the general public to question whether leaders can 
rise above the rule of law. 
LA LIME