The Justice Department has announced that in light of the joint ministerial press briefing on the Coronavirus outbreak at the offices of the International Relations Department in Pretoria on Monday, it will now release a statement on the parole reconsideration for Janusz Walus.
Minister of Justice, Ronald Lamola, was expected to announce his decision on the parole reconsideration of Walus as directed by the High Court in Pretoria.
The court set aside former Justice Minister Michael Masutha’s decision to refuse Walus’ parole in September 2018.
Walus shot and killed South African Communist Party (SACP) General-Secretary, Chris Hani, outside his home in Boksburg east of Johannesburg in April 1993.
In September 2018, the High Court ruled that the parole board failed to include relevant information in its recommendation to the Justice minister.
This includes among others, the failure by the parole board to offer Walus a chance to reply to its suggestion that he remains incarcerated. Several attempts for his release have repeatedly been denied.
The decision then went back to Lamola to decide the fate of Walus.
Walus was sentenced to death for the assassination of Hani in 1993. His death sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment.
A Short infographic thread on everything you need to know regarding Parole.
1. WHAT IS PAROLE? #ParoleReview pic.twitter.com/IRv51C9qYq
— @DCS (@DCSNational) March 5, 2020
In this video, Minister Lamola says amendments will be made to the parole system
