Pretoria, 9 February 2025 – Two years after their sudden and unlawful arrest, South African engineers Frik Potgieter and Peter Huxham remain imprisoned in Equatorial Guinea, despite international rulings declaring their detention illegal.
At the grim second anniversary of their incarceration, their families have issued an urgent plea to the Governments of South Africa and the UK to intensify their efforts to bring them home, and are calling on the President of Equatorial Guinea to grant them clemency.
“The 9th of February 2025 marks a heartbreaking milestone: two years of wrongful imprisonment for Frik and Peter, two innocent men trapped in a diplomatic standoff between South Africa and Equatorial Guinea. Two years of suffering, fear, and uncertainty. Two years of unanswered pleas, despite clear international and parliamentary calls for their freedom. For their families, every single day without them has been an unbearable injustice,” say Shaun Murphy and Francois Nigrini, spokespersons for the families.
Frik and Peter were arrested in Equatorial Guinea on 9 February 2023. On 1 July 2024, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention released a formal opinion on their case, deeming the arrests and ongoing detention both unlawful and arbitrary, and called for their immediate release. In October 2024, the South African Parliament passed a unanimous motion demanding urgent action to secure their release. Despite this, Frik and Peter remain in prison in Equatorial Guinea.
Both men are deeply accomplished and well respected professionally, and have worked in the oil and gas sector in Equatorial Guinea for many years. During this time, they have been instrumental in mentoring young people from Equatorial Guinea and providing the skills and training required for them to excel at their careers.
“These past two years have been a nightmare, one which both Frik and Peter and their families would like to put behind them as soon as possible so that they can move on with their lives. Frik and Peter are innocent men caught in a political storm not of their making. During our very limited number of calls with them (4 with Frik and 6 with Peter) over the past two years, it is clear that their physical and mental health is deteriorating and that their hope is waning too. We will, however, continue to plead for justice,” say Murphy and Nigrini. “Two years is too long. The time for action is now.”
“This is a diplomatic issue that requires a government-to-government solution. As the families of Frik and Peter, we are calling for four urgent actions:
- Ongoing South African diplomatic engagement: The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), Minister Ronald Lamola, and President Cyril Ramaphosa must continue to engage their counterparts in Equatorial Guinea to secure Frik and Peter’s immediate release.
- UK intervention: As a dual UK-South African citizen, Peter’s case also requires the UK government to do everything in their power to bring both men home.
- Accountability from Parliament: The South African Parliament must continue to hold government officials accountable, ensuring that every avenue is pursued with urgency and determination.
- Clemency from Equatorial Guinea’s President: President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, a devout Catholic and a father, has the power to show compassion and grant Frik and Peter clemency. We plead with him to end their suffering.
“The past two years have taken so much from our families. Time that can never be regained. We will not stop fighting for Frik and Peter. This must end now,” concludes the family spokespersons.
The families continue to call on all South Africans, civil society, and the international community to stand with them and demand justice.
#FreeFrikandPeter
