SOUTH AFRICA: South Africa's former deputy prime minister Jacob Zuma pleaded not guilty to rape yesterday at the opening - under a new judge - of a politically charged sexual abuse trial that has gripped a nation.
The former anti-apartheid freedom fighter, who until recently had been in line to succeed Thabo Mbeki as president of South Africa, admitted to having had sex with his accuser but claimed it was consensual.
The admission came in a statement read to Johannesburg High Court where Mr Zuma came face-to-face with his accuser, a 31-year-old activist and long-time family friend of the ANC politician.
The woman, who was rushed into court by armed members of a police witness protection programme, said Mr Zuma raped her on November 2nd last, and attempts were subsequently made to buy her silence.
It was claimed that a local government official with links to Mr Zuma phoned the woman's mother, offering compensation in return for a withdrawal of the charges.
Riot police mounted a security cordon around the courthouse to avoid a repetition of last month's clashes between Zuma supporters and women's rights activists.
The trial was suspended on that occasion when the judge originally scheduled to hear case stood down, claiming it would be unethical for him to try a former ANC comrade.
There were fears the alleged victim would never get her day in court as two other senior judges ruled themselves out of the hearing because of personal ties to Mr Zuma.
However, Judge Willem van der Merwe, a white Afrikaner, was finally appointed just four days ago - without protest from the defendant's lawyers.
The case is seen by women's rights campaigners as a landmark in the battle against sexual and domestic violence. But it has also taken on a major political dimension, coming nine months after President Mbeki sacked Mr Zuma for his alleged involvement in corruption.
Mr Zuma has suggested that he is the victim of plot to prevent him from succeeding Mr Mbeki - a theory reinforced by banners held aloft by hundreds of his followers yesterday.
"Media: stop lies" and "Why was Zuma raped?" were among the slogans displayed by the noisy crowd, some of whom were bussed to the event from Mr Zuma's homeland of KwaZulu Natal. A small number of people chanted slurs against the alleged rape victim, and scuffles broke out when police tried to move a vehicle with loudspeakers attached to it.
The mainly female supporters of the alleged victim, who brought banners highlighting that just one in nine rapes in South Africa are reported, were earlier directed to congregate at a separate location away from the court's entrance.
Carrie Shelver of People Opposing Woman Abuse said the case had the potential to dramatically change attitudes in a country where only 7 per cent of reported rapes led to a conviction.
She stressed, however: "People watching this case from overseas can't be complacent. I don't think any country beats a 30 per cent conviction rate, which highlights the need for laws to be changed internationally to make it easier for victims to bring cases to court."
The trial is due to last up to three weeks.