Test case for environmental activists
In what is seen as a landmark case in the Pretoria High Court that is expected to clarify the rights of environmental activists, a developer is suing an activist for R40m in damages for defamation.
The suit against Arthur Barnes, a former secretary of the Rhenosterspruit Conservancy near Lanseria in Gauteng, has been brought by developer Wraypex. It arises from the conservancys opposition to a 330-house luxury estate, golf course and hotel development, Blair Atholl, north-west of Johannesburg, notes a Mail & Guardian Online report. It is the first of five defamation cases that Wraypex plans to bring against members of the conservancy, claiming a total of R210m in damages. Among Wraypexs claims is that Barnes maliciously spread rumours that the company had not submitted a comprehensive environmental impact assessment, and that Blair Atholl was illegally pumping water out of the Crocodile River. Full Mail & Guardian Online report