Cape Town - Activists for women’s and children’s rights and politicians want changes in the law so sex offenders and abusers serve their full sentences without the possibility of parole.
The call comes in the wake of the kidnapping and murder of Tazne van Wyk, 8, and arrest of Moehydien Pangaker, 54, a known sex offender who had been released on parole for a similar crime.
SA Women Fight Back activist Debbie Engelbrecht said: “From what we’ve seen, most crimes are perpetrated by parolees. There’s clearly a problem with our parole board and I believe there will have to be legislative changes to ensure that such criminals serve their full sentence.
“Many of these perpetrators tend to commit their crimes when in the prime of their life, so when they’re jailed for just a few years then released on parole, it’s doubtful that they’ve been rehabilitated.”
Child Rights activist Lucinda Evans said: “We have to ask the question about whether these parolees receive a proper psychological evaluation before they’re given parole, or do they just serve eight years and get released for good behaviour as the jails are full?
“Is there any victim-offender dialogue before the release of such people? Are communities consulted, because if they were to be asked, I’m sure they’d say no parole.
“In the end we have to know who will be held responsible for the lax monitoring of this particular criminal.
“If there were no checks on this man’s whereabouts and movement for a whole year, we must not let the issue just die. I demand a full investigation with a report back so we can determine who is responsible.
“In the meantime, the head of the parole board should go and speak to the Van Wyk family and tell them what led to the parole.”
In his recent State of the Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa said: “We will amend the Domestic Violence Act to better protect victims in violent domestic relationships, and the Sexual Offences Act to broaden the categories of sex offenders, whose names must be included in the National Register for Sex Offenders, and we will pass a law to tighten bail and sentencing condition in cases that involve gender-based violence.”
Englebrecht said that even before the president made this promise there had been several similar promises from the government.
“Nothing is happening yet. We must now get past the planning stage and into a phase of action. Everybody must do their job. If a life sentence is 25 years, then the criminal must serve the full term.”
The issue of Tazne van Wyk hung like a dark cloud over the debate on the Premier’s State of the Province Address on Friday. Premier Alan Winde said: “Tazne is dead because the system is failing us. We let people out of jail too early and there are insufficient consequences for their crimes and then things like this happen.”
@MwangiGithahu