Gerrie Nel off the hook
SAHRC today rejected the complaint laid against Gerrie Nel for the manner in which he conducted his cross examination of murder-accused Oscar Pistorius.
THE South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has rejected the complaint filed last Friday against the State Prosecutor in the Oscar Pistorius trial currently underway in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.
The SAHRC was asked to investigate and rule on whether Gerrie Nel was permitted to refer to the accused Oscar Pistorius, as “a liar” while he was still on the witness stand.
The complainant believed the statement might have infringed Pistorius’ rights to be presumed innocent until proven guilty; freedom of expression; and human dignity, generally impacting on his right to a fair trial as contained in the Bill of Rights.
“The SAHRC considered the complaint within the context of basic fair trial rights protected in the Constitution. However on a close assessment of the facts of the matter, international jurisprudence, the Bar Council Rules, its own jurisdiction, and authority of the court, the complaint was rejected,” the SAHRC said in a statement a few minutes ago.
