Economists Allied for Arms Reduction-South Africa (Ecaar-SA) is to go ahead with litigation for the cancellation of the multi-billion rand arms deal, Ecaar-SA chairman Terry Crawford-Browne said yesterday.

On March 26, the Cape Town High Court ordered the government to hand over key arms deal documents to the group, which is challenging the validity of the deal.

The documents contain the advice of the international offers the negotiating team and financial working group set up for the deal.

The court gave President Thabo Mbeki and Finance Minister Trevor Manuel ten days to produce the documents.

Yesterday Crawford-Browne said, "in extraordinary contempt of that judgement" National Treasury director-general Maria Ramos instructed the court in a "affidavit in compliance" that access to the documents be limited to the applicants' legal advisors, and that appropriate directions be given by the court to protect the confidentiality of the documents.

"On Monday, May 12, in peculiar circumstances and with less than one hour's notice, I was called to view the documents," he said.

But, he refused to see the documents "surreptitiously or otherwise", as he was entitled to them and the public was entitled to know their contents, given the court's judgement.

Crawford-Browne said he believed Ecaar-SA had enough evidence to go ahead with the case without those particular documents.

"Accordingly, I have instructed our legal representatives to proceed with an application for court dates so that the matters of substance, rather than further delaying tactics of procedure, can be laid before the court and the public as soon as possible," he said.

Crawford-Browne, estimates the deal could cost taxpayers R287-billion by 2010.

Ecaar-SA has claimed in court papers that the government's financial commitment to the arms deal infringes the socio-economic rights of poor people to improved housing, health care, food, water, social security and education.

It is seeking to have foreign loan agreements and export guarantees entered into by Manuel for the purchase of the frigates, submarines, fighter aircraft and helicopters which are all part of the arms package, set aside.

It also wants the entire arms deal to be declared "null and void". – Sapa.