After Oscar Pistorius fatally shot girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp nine years ago, he is now set to meet her father in an attempt to secure an early release from prison.
In 2013, the 35-year-old South African athlete was convicted of murder for shooting his girlfriend Reeva multiple times through a locked toilet door at his home on Valentine's Day.
Pistorius was sentenced to five years in prison for manslaughter in 2014 but was later found guilty of murder in 2015. He was eventually sentenced to 13 years and five months in prison.
The former sprinter claimed at the trial that the murder was a "tragic accident" where he mistook his girlfriend for a dangerous intruder.
According to Daily Mail, under South African law, the athlete is eligible for parole after having served half of his sentence.
To be granted early release from prison, Pistorius must participate in a process called "restorative justice", which provides an opportunity "for parties to reconcile or an apology", as reported by The Independent,
Reeva's father, Barry Steenkamp, is reportedly preparing for a face-to-face meeting with his daughter's killer as part of South Africa's victim-offender dialogue policy.
The policy is to achieve some semblance of closure for families of victims of crimes and would allow Barry to question Pistorius on why he shot his daughter.
If the father is satisfied with the outcome of the talks and believes his daughter's killer has truly repented, then Pistorius could have a significant amount of time taken off his sentence.
Tania Koen, the Steenkamps' lawyer said: "They [Barry and June] feel that Reeva has got a voice. They are Reeva’s voice, and they owe it to their beloved daughter."
The Steenkamps will also be allowed to make requests to the parole board, although their opinion will not be the only criteria for Pistorius’s early release.
Last year, Reeva's parents spoke of their suffering when Pistorius wrote a letter to them after he became eligible for parole, saying they were "dumbfounded".
"I think the letter was sent to us to do with the parole that is coming up and yes, it's only June and I and our lawyer that has seen what has been written in it and we've kept quiet and we don't want to push it out to anyone as to what was said," Barry said at the time.
"We might let people know at a later stage but not now, what was written by Oscar," the grieving father stated, continuing that he would like to talk to his daughter's killer "man to man".
Barry expressed at that time that he would like a conversation with Pistorius because he feels there "are still a lot of things to come out of this story," adding that he hopes that he will "tell them the truth".
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