- The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria says former president Jacob Zuma should return to prison.
- The court found that the decision to place him on medical parole was unlawful.
- Zuma was sentenced to 15 month behind bars for contempt of court.
Lobby group AfriForum says it is "delighted" with the ruling of the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria that former correctional services national commissioner Arthur Fraser's decision to place former president Jacob Zuma on medical parole was unlawful.
"It is declared that the time [Zuma] was out of jail on medical parole should not be counted for the fulfilment of [Zuma's] sentence of 15 months imposed by the Constitutional Court," the court said.
In a statement following the ruling, the lobby group said it regarded the ruling as a breakthrough for justice since the court had ordered that the former president return to jail.
The lobby group and other parties, which included the Helen Suzman Foundation (HSF) and the DA, had asked for the urgent review of Zuma's medical parole.
The court ruled that the period that Zuma was out of jail on medical parole would not be deducted from his 15-month prison sentence.
Head of Policy and Action at AfriForum, Ernst Roets, said:
Meanwhile, HSF director Francis Antonie and the DA also welcomed the ruling.
Speaking to News24, Antonie said the ruling was a victory for the rule of law.
He said he had no "desire" to send a 79-year-old man to prison, but Zuma took an oath to uphold the Constitution.
"... we are all bound by that, and no one is above the law. I have no doubt that he will lose in the Supreme Court of Appeal as will Mr Arthur Fraser (former national commissioner) and then they will appeal to the Constitutional Court and that will be very, very strange because that's the court that sentenced him to jail."
The DA said in a statement that it "welcomes the order that Zuma's medical parole be revoked immediately, that he be returned to the custody of Correctional Services to serve out the remainder of his sentence, that no time spent on medical parole is to be counted as time served and that he and Mr Fraser pay all legal costs".
"The DA pursued this case not out of spite or vindictiveness towards Mr Zuma, but because we recognise that respect for the rule of law and equality before the law are two of the most important principles in our democracy. If we allow these to slide, we will severely weaken the foundation of our constitutional democracy. We are greatly encouraged by the firm and unambiguous position taken by Justice KE Matojane in this regard," the party said.
"It is never pleasant for anyone to go to jail, but Mr Zuma knew very well what the consequences would be for his blatant disregard for the law and the authority of the Constitutional Court. What this judgment has confirmed is that he is just an ordinary citizen with no special privileges, and that the law applies equally to him as it does to any of us."
The DA appealed to Zuma and his supporters to respect the rule of law and to "accept" the ruling.
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