You’ll pay for it! Hani’s widow tells Zondo, as judge releases unrepentant killer.
Within the next ten days, the Chief Justice has ordered the release of Hani’s murderer, Janusz Walus.
After the Constitutional Court freed Hani’s killer, Janusz Walus, the widow of the late struggle icon Chris Hani lashed out at Chief Justice Raymond Zondo on Monday. Her comments came after the court had released Walus, Business Day reports.
Limpho Hani referred to the judgment as “diabolical,” and she added that Zondo had let the country down.
The decision made in 2020 by then-Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola to deny Walus parole was overturned by the Constitutional Court in a decision that was reached by a unanimous vote.
‘Irrational’
Zondo stated, when delivering his verdict, that “the minister’s decision was irrational, falls to be reviewed, and must be set aside.”
Within the next 10 days, he gave the order to Lamola to free Walus.
One of the reasons that Lamola gave for denying the parole application was that the trial court that had sentenced him to jail wanted to send a message that would clarify that killing political leaders is not acceptable.
Since his conviction for the murder of the SACP leader and anti-apartheid activist in April 1993, Walus has been incarcerated at the Kgosi Mampuru II Correctional Facility, where he is serving a sentence of life in prison.
The Supreme Court of Appeal’s decision to deny Walu’s request for leave to appeal a high court ruling that upheld Lamola’s decision to deny Walus parole in March 2020 was challenged in Walu’s petition to the Supreme Court of the Republic of South Africa to overturn the decision of the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Zondo argued that the court should take into consideration the fact that he was involved in a serious crime that had been meticulously planned. According to him, Walu’s actions, along with those of right-wing politician Clive Derby-Lewis, nearly sparked widespread civil unrest across the nation.
Zondo stated that it appeared as though Walus and Derby-Lewis had the intention of delaying the implementation of democracy when they murdered Hani. He emphasized the fact that they had already spent the minimum necessary amount of time behind bars before being eligible for parole consideration.
Walus, who was found guilty in October 1993 and sentenced to prison, has been eligible to apply for parole for nearly twenty years at this point.
Both he and Derby-Lewis were given death sentences, but when South Africa did away with the practice of capital punishment, their sentences were changed to life in prison instead.
In 2015, Derby-Lewis was granted medical parole, and the following year, he passed away from cancer. It was alleged that he was the one who ordered the hit that Walus carried out.
Walus said it was important for the public to find out the reasons and grounds for his continued incarceration, and he said this should be done as soon as possible.
In an effort to win his freedom, he made the following statement: “It appears that I will be incarcerated for the rest of my life, which is an unjust, inhumane, and cruel punishment.”
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Limpho Hani, who has steadfastly opposed Walu’s release, was seething as she addressed the media after Zondo’s ruling. She said that karma would deal with those who had let her husband’s killer get away with their crimes.
She said, “This judgment is diabolical,” and added that it was a miscarriage of justice and lent credence to claims that the judiciary is captured. “This judgment is a miscarriage of justice,” she said.
The ruling was also criticized by the SACP, and the secretary-general of that party, Solly Mapaila, asserted that Walus had not demonstrated any sign of remorse for his actions.
