Rght-wing bomber released and re-arrested

A notorious right-winger sentenced to life imprisonment for the Christmas Eve bombing in Worcester, SA, in 1996 has been released on parole and re-apprehended within weeks. According to a Rapport report, Jan van der Westhuizen allegedly skipped the country on the day of his release. He is being held in a Namibian jail pending extradition proceedings. Van der Westhuizen was sentenced in 1997 to life imprisonment for the murder of four people (of whom three were children) and injuring 67 others. It later emerged that he was the leader of a group calling themselves ‘Israel Visie’ (Israel Vision). He was released on parole three weeks ago and part of his conditions were that he was not allowed to leave the district of Upington. Marjorie Jobson, of the Khulumani Support Group, who represented victims of the bombings, said they were shocked to learn about Van der Westhuizen’s release without warning to the victims: ‘As I understand it, victims of politically-motivated terror crimes must be informed beforehand.’ She accompanied two victims in 2017 to meet Van der Westhuizen and says the prisoner was unrepentant. Josial Ramokoena, spokesperson of the Department of Correctional Services, said they received information that Van der Westhuizen travelled to Namibia within hours of his release in contravention of his parole conditions. They asked Interpol to apprehend him.

The other members of the group were Cliffie Barnard, Koper Myburgh and Stefaans Coetzee. Coetzee, then only 19-years-old, was the only one to plead guilty to 11 charges of murder, sabotage and violations of the Internal Security Act. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison, while his accomplices were all sentenced to life. City Press reports that Coetzee was released on parole in 2015 after asking his victims for forgiveness. He has since written a book about his experiences, in which he describes how he turned his back on the far-right ideology of Israel Vision after meeting the Vlakplaas commander Eugene de Kock in prison. Barnard and Myburgh were released on parole a few months after Coetzee. Van der Westhuizen was released on 29 April without ever showing remorse for his actions.