Van der Walt had also inquired about what happens to the illegal foreign nationals when they are eligible for parole and after they have served their sentences.
Responding to this, Lamola said it was the responsibility of home affairs.
“The department of correctional services (DCS) is responsible for identifying foreign nationals in its detention facilities and reporting such individuals to the department of home affairs (DHA),” he said.
“The DHA is responsible for establishing the nationality of such offenders and initiating the deportation of those whose stay in the RSA is illegal or undesirable. It is the responsibility of the DCS to hand over such offenders to the relevant authorities either for release or deportation based on status confirmed by DHA.”
In cases where the foreign national offender is found to be suitable for parole placement, Lamola said according to the conditions set for all sentenced foreign nationals to be deported, offenders:
- should not return to SA before the expiration of the parole period;
- may not commit crime while on parole;
- must seek authorisation from the DHA to return to the country after expiration of the parole period; and
- their personal details must be circulated to all SA borders, the SA Police Service and criminal record centres until the expiry of the parole period.
“The circulation of personal details to SA borders, the SAPS and criminal records centres will assist in tracking the deported foreign nationals should he/she reoffend and get rearrested,” he said.
“The offender will be handed over to department of home affairs, who must sign for receipt of the parolee for detention at a repatriation centre, pending deportation to their country of origin.”
TimesLIVE
Nearly 18,000 illegal foreign nationals jailed in SA in last five years: Lamola
Nearly 18,000 illegal foreign nationals have been incarcerated in the country’s correctional facilities in the last five years.
Of these, about 52% were sentenced by November 2021.
Minister of justice and correctional services Ronald Lamola made this revelation in a written parliamentary response.
DA MP Désirée van der Walt had inquired about the number of illegal foreign nationals incarcerated in the country between 2017 and 2021.
In a detailed annual breakdown, Lamola said 17,994 had been incarcerated since 2017:
According to the provincial breakdown, Gauteng has the highest number of unsentenced nationals in detention (602), followed by the Free State (444) and Limpopo (341).
Van der Walt had also inquired about what happens to the illegal foreign nationals when they are eligible for parole and after they have served their sentences.
Responding to this, Lamola said it was the responsibility of home affairs.
“The department of correctional services (DCS) is responsible for identifying foreign nationals in its detention facilities and reporting such individuals to the department of home affairs (DHA),” he said.
“The DHA is responsible for establishing the nationality of such offenders and initiating the deportation of those whose stay in the RSA is illegal or undesirable. It is the responsibility of the DCS to hand over such offenders to the relevant authorities either for release or deportation based on status confirmed by DHA.”
In cases where the foreign national offender is found to be suitable for parole placement, Lamola said according to the conditions set for all sentenced foreign nationals to be deported, offenders:
“The circulation of personal details to SA borders, the SAPS and criminal records centres will assist in tracking the deported foreign nationals should he/she reoffend and get rearrested,” he said.
“The offender will be handed over to department of home affairs, who must sign for receipt of the parolee for detention at a repatriation centre, pending deportation to their country of origin.”
TimesLIVE
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