'This judgment is diabolical': Chris Hani's widow slams Zondo

“This judgment is diabolical.”

That's how anti-apartheid activist Chris Hani's widow, Limpho, described the decision to parole her husband's killer Janusz Waluś. 

The Constitutional Court ruled on Monday that Waluś is eligible for parole and should be released within 10 days. He was arrested in 1993 and became eligible for parole 15 years ago.

This comes after an unanimous judgment penned by chief justice Raymond Zondo was handed down by the court after justice minister Ronald Lamola rejected Walus' parole application on numerous occasions based on the seriousness of his crime.

The minister’s office indicated it will study the judgment.

After the ConCourt judgment, a visibly upset Limpho told media she and her family suffered trauma as a result of Walus’ actions. 

“This country is finished. In this country a foreign white [man] can come into SA and kill my husband.”

She claimed the court was not concerned with justice.

“I have been in and out of court, and Waluś lost all the cases. Now these ones, because in South Africa they are gods, what they say goes. I wish them the best. You know about karma, watch this space. All of them, I give them two years.

“This judgment is diabolical, totally diabolical. I’ve never seen anything like this.”

In his judgment, Zondo said Lamola's decision to reject Walus' parole was “irrational, falls to be reviewed and must be set aside”.  

Zondo said Waluś and right-wing politician Clive Derby-Lewis almost plunged the country into civil unrest with Hani's death and the pair had been intentional in delaying democracy.

He however highlighted that Waluś had served the minimum required time behind bars before he could be considered for parole.

“A period of more than 15 years has lapsed since [Walus] became eligible for consideration to be placed on parole. It was in 2005 that [Walus] became eligible to be considered for placement on parole,” Zondo said.

“The evidence reveals that during his imprisonment all these years since 1993 [Walus] has had no negative disciplinary record in prison. The minister accepts that the applicant’s risk of reoffending if he were to be placed on parole is low. The applicant has apologised to [Hani’s widow Limpho] Hani and her family more than once.”

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