South African court rejects Jacob Zuma’s parole appeal, insists ex-president returns to jail

The South African constitutional court has dismissed an appeal seeking to overturn a previous ruling that would see former President Jacob Zuma return to jail.

In November 2022, the country’s supreme court of appeal ordered the former president back to prison to finish his sentence for contempt.

Zuma was sentenced to 15 months in prison after he was found guilty of contempt of court following his refusal to appear before a graft panel.

He had been released in September 2021 on medical parole after serving only two months out of his 15-month sentence but a high court ruling set aside the decision.

The former president appealed the ruling, and on October 7, the department of correctional services said he had completed his sentence and, was subsequently freed.

But Tati Makgoka, the presiding judge, ruled that the decision to grant Zuma parole against the advice of the medical advisory board, a specialist body, was unlawful.

The department of correctional services then turned to the constitutional court to try and overturn the ruling but the application was dismissed on Thursday.

“On any conceivable basis, the commissioner’s decision was unlawful and unconstitutional. The high court was correct to set it aside,” the constitutional court ruled.

The court also rejected a decision by the department of correctional services that said Zuma’s prison sentence had finished while his appeal was being heard.

“In other words, Mr Zuma, in law, has not finished serving his sentence. He must return to the Estcourt Correctional centre to do so,” the judgement reads.

The department of correctional services said it noted and respects the court’s decision.

“(We) will study the full judgement in seeking to clarify a way forward within the requisite time frame,” a statement said.