South Africa's
former President Jacob Zuma has been spared from returning to prison, with
officials saying this to ease overcrowding.
Zuma, who was
sentenced to 15 months for contempt of court, surrendered himself to the
authorities on Friday.
He had
previously been freed on medical parole - in a move ruled illegal by the
courts.
Justice Minister
Ronald Lamola said he had been given remission to address overcrowding in
prisons.
He said the
decision had been taken by the prison authorities without any political
interference.
The remission
process aims to alleviate strain on the system by releasing low-risk offenders.
South Africa's
Commissioner of Prisons Makgothi Thobakgale said Zuma had reported to the
Estcourt Correctional Facility in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal on Friday
morning and was "admitted" into the system, before being released an
hour later.
The remission
status was approved by President Cyril Ramaphosa to more than 9,000 low-risk
prisoners.
He says that
this "remission process" started in April.
South Africa's
main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, has said it will legally
challenge the remission granted to the former president. While the ruling
African National Congress (ANC) in KwaZulu-Natal has welcomed the decision and
said it is in the best interest of the country.
More broadly the
reaction has also been mixed. Some South Africans say the government should
focus on pressing issues such as frequent power outages, high crime rates,
poverty and youth unemployment, while others say Zuma should go back to jail to
serve the rest of his term.
Zuma's jailing
in 2021 sparked protests and riots that left more than 350 people dead.
He was sentenced
after refusing to testify before a panel probing financial sleaze and cronyism
under his presidency.
He was however
freed on medical parole just two months into his term.
An appeals court
last November found the release was illegally granted and ordered Zuma back to
prison to finish his sentence. Last month, the constitutional court rejected an
attempt to overturn this decision
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