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S. African party to appeal against release of its leader murderer

Xinhua, March 13, 2016 Adjust font size:

The South African Communist Party (SACP) said on Saturday it will appeal against a court ruling ordering the release of convicted murderer of its leader Chris Hani.

The SACP has started legal consultations in a bid to have the decision reversed, Spokesperson Alex Mashilo said.

The party's lawyers have already met with legal representatives of Justice and Correctional Services Minister Michael Masutha, said Mashilo.

The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria ordered on Thursday that Janusz Walus, who murdered Hani in 1993, be released on parole in 14 days.

The SACP accused the judge of being bias and vowed to have the ruling reversed.

"Our legal team contacted the team of the Minister to discuss the way forward. We are resolved as the SACP that we cannot leave this judgement unchallenged," said Mashilo.

He called the ruling "a political matter that nearly drove our country into the brink of civil war".

"Now we are not just going to respond to it legally; we are going to respond to it politically and in the next week we will start rolling out political action in this regard," said the spokesperson.

Walus, a Polish immigrant, was initially sentenced to death for killing Hani, but this was converted to life in prison after the abolition of capital punishment.

The ruling African National Congress (ANC) has demanded the immediate deportation of Walus to his country of origin once he is released. Enditem