From Paralympic star to convicted murderer
Oscar Pistorius, a former South African Paralympic star, was released on parole on Friday after serving nearly 11 years in jail for murdering his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. The crime shocked the nation, which has long been plagued by violence against women.
Pistorius, who is also known as “Blade Runner” for his carbon-fibre prosthetic legs, shot Steenkamp dead through a locked bathroom door on Valentine’s Day in 2013. He claimed that he mistook her for an intruder and fired four shots into the bathroom at his Pretoria home. However, he was convicted of murder and has launched multiple appeals against his conviction.
The Department of Correctional Services confirmed that Pistorius is now a parolee, effective 5 January 2024. He was admitted into the system of Community Corrections and is now at home. Pistorius has spent about eight and a half years in jail as well as seven months under home arrest before he was sentenced for murder. A parole board in November decided he could be freed after completing more than half his sentence.
Pistorius’ rise as a Paralympic star
Pistorius was once the darling of the sports world and a pioneering voice for disabled athletes. He campaigned to be allowed to compete with non-disabled participants at major sports events and became the first double amputee to compete at the London Olympics in August 2012. He reached the 400 metres semi-finals and won two gold medals at the Paralympics.
The murder of Reeva Steenkamp
On 14 February 2013, Pistorius shot and killed his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, through a locked bathroom door at his Pretoria home. He claimed that he mistook her for an intruder and fired four shots into the bathroom. However, he was convicted of murder after the Supreme Court of Appeal found him guilty in December 2015. He was sentenced to six years in July 2016 despite prosecutors arguing for a minimum sentence of 15 years. In November 2017, the Supreme Court of Appeal more than doubled his sentence to 13 years and five months, describing his earlier term as “shockingly lenient”.
Restorative justice
Pistorius met Reeva’s father, Barry Steenkamp, in 2022 in a “victim-offender dialogue,” an integral part of South Africa’s restorative justice system. Restorative justice aims to find closure for affected parties in a crime instead of punishing perpetrators.
Reaction to Pistorius’ release
South Africans have mixed reactions to Pistorius’ release, with some feeling he has served his time, while others see his punishment as too lenient. A monitoring official will keep an eye on him until his sentence expires in December 2029, and he is required to continue therapy on anger management and attend sessions on gender-based violence as part of his parole conditions.
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