Action Society says reports that nearly 28 000 parole absconders cannot currently be traced by South Africa’s correctional system should serve as a national wake-up call about the dangerous failures within the country’s parole system.
According to reports, thousands of convicted offenders, including murderers, rapists and armed robbers, have disappeared from supervision while remaining unaccounted for by authorities.
Action Society says this is not merely an administrative problem. It is a direct public safety crisis.
“South Africans are repeatedly told that dangerous offenders can safely be reintegrated into society under strict parole conditions. But what does that promise mean if the state cannot even trace nearly 28 000 parole absconders?” said Juanita du Preez, spokesperson for Action Society.
“A parole system that cannot supervise offenders, enforce conditions, or coordinate effectively with police is a system that places communities at risk. Public safety cannot depend on paperwork and hope.”
Action Society renewed its call for urgent and comprehensive parole reform, warning that the current system too often prioritises administrative processes over the safety of victims and vulnerable communities.
The organisation says parole should never become an automatic procedural outcome for violent offenders where the state lacks the capacity to properly monitor compliance or respond swiftly to violations.
Action Society is calling for:
- Stricter parole eligibility for serious violent offenders, including convicted murderers, rapists, child abusers and repeat violent offenders.
- Immediate consequences for parole violations and absconding, supported by modern tracing technology and active enforcement.
- A shared live database between Correctional Services and SAPS to ensure police officers know which offenders are on parole, who has absconded, and which individuals may pose a high risk to communities.
- Greater transparency regarding sexual offenders, including reform of the National Register for Sex Offenders to better protect children while remaining within lawful safeguards.
Du Preez said Action Society’s position is informed by the cases the organisation encounters across South Africa.
“In Hanover Park, Action Society stood with a community after a nine-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a parolee. That case exposed the devastating consequences when high-risk offenders are released into vulnerable communities without proper safeguards or monitoring,” she said.
Action Society also previously opposed parole for Marius van der Westhuizen, the former police officer convicted of murdering his three children.
“In cases involving violent crimes against women and children, the justice system cannot afford to gamble with public safety,” Du Preez added. “Victims and surviving families should never feel that their safety and trauma are secondary considerations in parole decisions.”
Action Society says South Africa’s parole system must be rebuilt around three non-negotiable principles: public safety, offender accountability, and meaningful consideration of victims’ rights.
“Rehabilitation matters, but rehabilitation cannot simply be presumed where the state lacks the ability to monitor, trace, and enforce parole conditions,” said Du Preez.
“South Africa does not need parole by paperwork. It needs parole that is earned, monitored and enforceable. Until that standard is achieved, dangerous offenders should not be released into communities the state is not prepared to protect.”
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