The South African Parliament last week, through the Minister of Correctional Services , Ndebele, released the figures of foreigners currently serving various jail terms in South African prisons.According to Ndebele, there are close to nine thousand (9,000) foreign nationals in the various prisons across South Africa.
This number, according to the minister, is just 6 percent of the inmates currently serving various jail terms in South African prisons. Also, about two-third of the foreign prisoners are nationals of neighbouring Zimbabwe and Mozambique
Of this number, about four thousand, eight hundred and eighty-six (4,886) are sentenced prisoners, while the rest are awaiting trial or awaiting sentencing. According to a South African Daily, the Star Newspaper of Monday August 12, 2013, they are just a fraction of the total prison population, which at February was one hundred and fifty-two thousand,six hundred and sixty-five (152,665).
According to the South African Authorities, these foreigners were convicted for offences such as: aggressive crimes, economic crimes, sexual crimes and drug-related offences.
The jailed foreigners included three thousand, seven hundred and forty-two (3,742) from Zimbabwe, two thousand, two hundred and sixty-eight (2,268) from Mozambique, nine hundred and nine(909) from Lesotho, four hundred and twenty-six (426) from Nigeria, three hundred and thirty-two (332) from Malawi and two hundred and sixty-four (264) from Tanzania.
Altogether, this costs the South African Prison Service over one billion Rand to cater for these jailed foreigners.
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