NATIONAL NEWS - The families of the two South Africans who are detained, allegedly unlawfully, in Equatorial Guinea (EG), Frik Potgieter (54) from George and Peter Huxham (55) from Langebaan, have launched the Free Frik and Peter campaign to demand their urgent release.

At the centre of the campaign is the website www.freefrikandpeter.co.za, which serves as a hub for information on their case, and includes an online petition calling for decisive action from our government.

The two engineers have been held as state hostages in EG since their arrests on 9 February 2023 in Malabo on drug-trafficking charges that were allegedly fabricated.

They were scheduled to return home the next morning after a five-week work rotation for their employer, SBM Offshore.

The families have now launched an online petition, website and social media campaign to share their story and demand their urgent release.

"Frik and Peter are caught in the political crossfire between SA and EG," reads a statement by the families.

They were working abroad for their employer, a global oil and gas company, when they were arrested, just two days after SA seized the luxury superyacht belonging to EG's vice president, Teodore Nguema Obiang. His two luxury Cape Town villas were also seized.

These seizures followed a court ruling in SA on an unrelated matter. The superyacht, which was docked at the Cape Town harbour, was released in late February last year after Obiang threatened to confiscate SA assets and close EG air and maritime space for SA boats or planes entering and exiting the country if the yacht, Blue Shadow, was not released.

The villas however, remain impounded in SA, and Potgieter and Huxham remain in prison in EG.

According to a spokesperson for the Potgieter family, Shaun Murphy, there is no doubt that they are innocent, and no doubt that their arrests are aimed at forcing SA to release the vice president's properties. "This is clear from his [Obiang's] outrage against SA on Twitter / X when Frik and Peter were arrested," said Murphy.

Campaign for freedom

The campaign is intended to call on all parties to assist in securing Potgieter and Huxham's freedom, but most especially the assistance of the SA and UK governments, as Huxham is a dual citizen.

"We were hopeful when Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor visited EG on 5 May to plead for the men's release, but since then there has been no movement. No family should have to go through this nightmare of having their loved ones held hostage in a foreign prison or being used as political pawns. That's why we're uniting through this campaign to show SA and our own government that our voices for bringing our family members home will never fall silent," said Murphy.

For his five-week rotation break back in SA, Huxham was planning to compete in the Cape Town Cycle Tour, kite-surf, help his partner, Kathy, build their new home, and spend time with his family. 

Potgieter had his sights set on fishing, helping his daughter arrange her wedding, and doing maintenance to their family home.

"Instead, they were sent to prison for a crime they didn't commit, and remain there to this day," said a statement by the families.

"Their court case in June 2023 in EG was a farce," continues the statement.

Peter Huxham and the love of his life, Kathy McConnachie, in happier days.

Drugs 'found in luggage'

It was alleged that the drugs were found in their luggage; however, their luggage, combination-locked and unopened, was still in their rooms five days later, when their employer collected them in the presence of the hotel management and the local police.

Potgieter and Huxham each received a 12-year prison sentence and were fined $5-million each.

Their employer immediately assembled an international team of experts to ensure Frik and Peter's defence, and to provide daily support to the families.

The families, through their legal team, lodged an appeal against the court proceedings and the excessive sentences. However, no further action has been taken by the Equatorial Guinea government or justice system regarding the appeal.

The SA Department of International Relations (Dirco's) consular desk has managed to arrange just three visits by its officials in EG to the men since their arrests, and two calls to each of their partners. 

Another visit was arranged by the UK High Commissioner, where Huxham was granted a brief call to Kathy.

Find the campaign on social media on X/Twitter and on Facebook.

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