Petrus Johannes "Pieter" Groenewald (born 27 August 1955) is a South African politician who is currently serving as Minister of Correctional Services since July 2024.[1] He served as the Leader of the Freedom Front Plus from November 2016 until February 2025. He started his political career by being elected Mayor of Stilfontein in 1988. He relinquished the position in 1989 due to his election to the House of Assembly. Groenewald co-founded the Freedom Front in 1994,and served as a Member of the National Assembly until his election to the North West Provincial Legislature in 1999. He returned to the National Assembly in 2001.[3][4]
Groenewald's son,Michal,also serves as public representative for the party.[5]
Early life
Pieter Groenewald was born in South Africa. He achieved a B.luris degree from the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education. Other degrees that Groenewald has obtained include a Postgraduate Diploma in Communications,a master's degree in Management and Development,and a Doctorate in Politics.[6]
Political career
Groenewald delivering a speech at his party's 2019 election manifesto launch
In March 1994,Groenewald co-founded the Freedom Front,a minority rights and pro-Afrikaner nationalism political party. He was elected to the newly-established National Assembly in April of the same year. He served as a Member of Parliament until he was elected to the North West Provincial Legislature in 1999. He served as a North West MPL from 1999 until he returned to the National Assembly in 2001.[7]
Groenewald has held various leadership positions in the Freedom Front Plus,such as Parliamentary Leader and Federal Chairperson from 11 August 2011 until 12 November 2016. He was also the Provincial Leader of the party in the North West from March 1994 to March 2017.[7]
On 12 November 2016,Groenewald was elected Leader of the Freedom Front Plus,succeeding Pieter Mulder,who retired from the position. Advocate Anton Alberts succeeded Groenewald as Federal Chairperson.[8]
Groenewald led the Freedom Front Plus to achieve its best election result in the 2019 general election. The party increased its vote share to 2.38% of the national vote,earning it ten seats in the National Assembly,its highest representation in the National Assembly since its founding in 1994. Additionally,the party won representation in eight of the nine provincial legislatures and largely improved its showing in the provinces of Gauteng and the North West.[9][10][11]
Following the 2024 general election,Groenewald was appointed as Minister of Correctional Services by president Cyril Ramaphosa with effect 3 July 2024.[12][1] Groenewald was then succeeded by CornéMulder as parliamentary leader of the party in July 2024 before being succeeded by him as party leader in February 2025.[13][14] However,Groenewald remained in his ministerial position.[15]
Controversies
Advocacy for a White Autonomous Region
Under the leadership of Pieter Groenewald,the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) has promoted policies consistent with white separatist ideology. The party has publicly opposed affirmative action and advocated for land reform initiatives that explicitly benefit white Afrikaners. Central to its platform is a commitment to "self-determination" and the protection of so-called "minority rights," which the party interprets as including the establishment of racially exclusive enclaves—areas where people of other races would be excluded from living or working.
Groenewald has repeatedly argued in favour of white Afrikaner self-governance,invoking the possibility of forming a tenth province designated for Afrikaner autonomy. In a 2018 parliamentary debate on land expropriation without compensation,he warned that such a policy would lead to “civil war,”drawing jeers from other Members of Parliament. In other speeches,he has raised fears about the nationalisation of South Africa and urged white South Africans to begin preparing for territorial separation,referencing towns like Orania as models and stepping stones toward broader racial self-governance.[16]
In a 2017 statement he emphasised that white landowners “had worked and paid for their land”and “won’t apologise for it”. From the 1890s through apartheid,successive laws systematically barred Black South Africans from buying or leasing 93% of the country’s land,reserving it for white ownership regardless of any payment by white settlers.[17][18]
Advocacy for Violation of Human Rights and International Law
As Minister of Correctional Services,Pieter Groenewald has publicly advocated for the reintroduction of corporal punishment in South Africa’s penal system. In a statement,he questioned whether the country should "bring back corporal punishment," citing perceived inefficiencies in the criminal justice system,including prolonged pre-sentencing detention for petty offences. This proposal directly contravenes both domestic and international legal standards. Corporal punishment was outlawed in South African prisons in 1996 through parliamentary legislation. Its abolition was further reinforced by the Constitutional Court in S v Williams and Others (1995),which ruled corporal punishment unconstitutional on the grounds that it violated human dignity. Additionally,the practice is prohibited under Rule 43 of the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules),which explicitly bans cruel,inhuman,or degrading treatment,including corporal punishment,indefinite solitary confinement,and deprivation of food or water.
Groenewald’s comments drew widespread condemnation. The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) stated that his remarks violated both constitutional protections and international human rights standards. Popcru spokesperson Richard Mamabolo described his proposal as “a reversal of legal progress”and “an erosion of a rights-based society,”reiterating that correctional facilities are designed for rehabilitation and reintegration,not vengeance. Groenewald has also suggested that some prisoners serving life sentences should be denied parole even after completing rehabilitation programmes,a stance that has been criticised as undermining the principles of restorative justice. His appointment as Minister of Correctional Services was condemned by the Economic Freedom Fighters,who called it “a betrayal of all who fought in the liberation struggle,”citing his historical support for apartheid and for punitive correctional policies.[19][20][21][22]
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