Legal eagle and conveyancer Tania Koen is making a name for herself as she stands firm against the parole of notorious killers.
She has been the voice for the victims who died at the hands of killers like Donovan Moodley, mass murderer Adam Woest, and former Paralympian Oscar Pistorius.
Koen said her journey began in fighting parole bids when former tennis champion and child rapist Bob Hewitt’s parole was granted. He was released in 2020.
Koen is passionate in her stance and is also the Co-CEO of the Reeva Steenkamp Foundation which works with organisations around the country trying to bring justice and closure for many families and victims.
When she’s not in the courtroom or fighting a parole bid, Koen finds solace in spending time with her family and children.
“I love spending time with my family, and I feel so blessed,” she said.
“I am always grateful that my family have not become victims, given the times we are living in. I think what also drives me with my work is that it could have been my daughter or my son.”
When asked what kept her passionate about what she does, she said it was showing compassion for what others were experiencing.
“I feel empathy for the victims and their families.”
“They (offenders) get a life sentence, and after a few years, they are eligible for parole while the victims have a life sentence, and there are triggers that take them back to what they have experienced.
“It is not just the victim. There are the families who are left behind.
“It is them missing that person on Mother’s Day or Father's Day or birthday.
“We all have an obligation to give back, and like these persons, they have become like family, and you do become personally involved. I sit and cry with them.
“What I have found with these victims is that even if it is 18 years, for them, it feels like yesterday.”
With the Reeva Steenkamp Foundation, they are helping others in the field to grow: “When we host fund-raisers for the foundation, a bursary is given to a final year law student.”
Pistorius can reapply for a parole hearing in 2024, while Woest’s Victim Dialogue, which forms part of the parole bid, took place in January.
Moodley’s parole bid took place in March, and he will undergo further reviews and psychotherapy and profiling before any decision can be made.
Leigh Visser, the sister of Warren Visser, a victim of the Sizzlers’ Massacre, said they were grateful for Koen’s input: “Tania Koen, your support was instrumental in ensuring we were strong and ready to face the person that has haunted us for decades.”