South Africa’s broken and indifferent justice system has produced yet another victim of sexual violence, this time in the form a 19-year-old Duduza woman who was raped while walking home from a friend’s house by Sphiwe Isaac Makula (27) who was out on parole for raping another woman. Action Society demands public access to the sexual offenders’ list and a complete overhaul of our parole system. Privacy laws should protect victims, not perpetrators.
Makula was arrested for rape on November 24, 2022, at his residence and was held in custody until the sentencing. He pleaded not guilty, but Action Society commended the state prosecutor in this case for highlighting that Makula was a repeat offender and a danger to society.
“Action Society welcomes the sentencing of the 27-year-old serial rapist, but we must not blind ourselves to the fact that this could have been avoided if our justice system had a functioning parole system in place. Those who commit serious crimes, including rape, should not be eligable for parole. Furthermore, South Africa’s parole system fails to monitor parolees and in effect allows rapists and killers to roam our communities only to reoffend, victimising women and children,” said Action Society spokesperson, Juanita du Preez.
