SOUTH AFRICA:UP TO 10,000 volatile supporters of Jacob Zuma are expected to descend on Pietermaritzburg High Court today to support the ANC leader, who will find out whether he must stand trial on charges of fraud and corruption.
A heavy police presence is expected at the KwaZulu-Natal province courthouse. Supporters of the ANC leader rioted outside the offices of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in Durban on Wednesday, demanding that the charges against Mr Zuma be dropped.
Supporters of Mr Zuma threw stones at riot police standing outside the NPA offices throughout the duration of a standoff. In return, police fired rubber bullets and made a number of arrests.
As events unfolded in Durban, the controversial leader of the ANC Youth League, Julius Malema, called on party members to attend the announcement of today's ruling so they could throw "a huge party" to celebrate their leader's release.
Lawyers for Mr Zuma claim the 2004 charges against their client were not entered by the prosecuting authority in accordance with the law, and therefore they should be dropped. His supporters say he is innocent, and that the charges are politically motivated.
Mr Malema added that even if the judge ruled that Mr Zuma had to stand trial on the 12 charges relating to a multi-billion rand government arms deal secured by French arms company Thint, they would still ensure he was the country's next president.
"From Pietermaritzburg, we will march with him to the Union Buildings [Parliament]. We'll never hand over our president to jail without a fight. We're going to fight. Any force that tries to block our way, we will eliminate. We are on a mission here. We will crush you. It doesn't matter who you are . . . even if you are in the ANC," Mr Malema warned.
Such outbursts have been widely criticised as they are seen as an attempt to intimidate the judiciary ahead of the ruling. Senior members of the ANC and the country's biggest union, Cosatu, have been critical of the judiciary's handling of the case.
Mr Malema has denied the charge of intimidation, saying that his criticisms of the judiciary do not mean he would not comply with the law. However, many fear an outbreak of violence is inevitable if the ruling does not go in Mr Zuma's favour.
The ANC leader is in pole position to become South Africa's next president and has said he will only stand down if convicted of the charges.