Parliament’s correctional services committee has endorsed legislative reforms to streamline the deportation of foreign nationals serving sentences in SA’s prisons, citing overcrowding and rising costs as key concerns.
At Monday’s peace and security cluster briefing, committee chair Kgomotso Ramolobeng confirmed there was support for proposed amendments to the Correctional Services Act that would enable prisoner exchanges and facilitate foreign nationals — particularly those serving life sentences — returning to their countries of origin.
“With more than 13,000 foreign nationals in our prison system, this move will help ease overcrowding and reduce the R11m daily strain on taxpayers,” Ramolobeng said.
The committee noted more than 12,000 of these individuals remain in remand detention awaiting trial, and are often unable to afford bail.
“We also encourage the minister to engage with the department of home affairs to ensure closer collaboration during the review of the act,” Ramolobeng said, emphasising that sentencing guidelines and deportation processes would be a key focus in the revision.
The department of correctional services manages nearly 163,000 inmates, many housed in overcrowded facilities.
Ramolobeng welcomed the department’s response to recommendations from parliament and reiterated that “communities, civil society and the committee itself will actively contribute to the review”.
Correctional services minister Pieter Groenewald recently disclosed that housing foreign nationals continues to place immense financial pressure on the system, prompting calls for more aggressive legislative action to reduce the burden.
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