DA welcomes action to seek release of SA engineers jailed in Equatorial Guinea

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has welcomed the news that after 15 months of silence, Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) is taking action to secure the release of two South African engineers incarcerated in Equatorial Guinea.

Dirco is the foreign ministry of the South African government. It is responsible for South Africa’s relationships with foreign countries and international organisations, and runs South Africa’s diplomatic missions.

Frik Potgieter and Peter Huxham, both engineers working for a Dutch company in the region, were arrested at their hotel in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea on 9 February 2023, a night before they were due to fly back to South Africa.

Their arrests, based on trumped up drug trafficking charges, are widely believed to be in retaliation for the seizure of luxury properties and a super yacht belonging to Equatorial Guinea’s vice-president, Teodore Nguema Obiang Mangue, who also happens to be the son of the president.

The super yacht was seized by the sheriff, just two days prior to their arrest.

According to a DA media release on Friday, the ‘court case’ held in June 2023 in Equatorial Guinea, was a sham.

No credible evidence was presented by the prosecution and Potgieter and Huxham were not given an opportunity to present their case.

Minister Naledi Pandor will visit Equatorial Guinea

They received a 12-year prison sentence each, and are currently being held in a prison in Mongomo, reserved for political prisoners.

They were also ordered to pay $5 million (R92.4 million) each in damages, and additional fines to be shared between them.

Emma Louise Powell MP, the DA Shadow Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, said that Potgieter and Huxham’s unlawful detention is a clear breach of human rights by the government of Equatorial Guinea.

On Saturday, 4 May, Minister Naledi Pandor will visit Equatorial Guinea to begin negotiating the release of the two engineers.

The DA wished Minister Pandor “well” with the negotiations and called on her office to keep the families of the engineers updated as discussions progress.

The South African website will keep readers updated as regards the latest news.

Naledi Pandor is a South African politician, educator and academic and has served as the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation since 2019.