Outrage has greeted the released-on-parole of Mark Scott-Crossley, one of the men who threw a worker's body to lions in Hoedspruit in 2004, on Thursday.

The North West Congress of SA Trade Unions said it was "totally" against Scott-Crossley's release on parole.

"It is clear from the poor working class, poor communities that those who are rich and white will continue to be treated differently to those who are poor," said the federation in a statement.

Cosatu called the members of civil society to petition the department of justice, department of correctional services and the Human Rights Commission for their "poor service".

The SA Prisoners' Organisation for Human Rights was also angered by Scott-Crossley's parole release.

"The sudden release of a violent and racist offender after serving nearly a portion of a very serious and heinous crime cannot be left unchallenged."

SAPOHR president Miles Bhudu called for the release of all the non-violent first-time offenders, those who have served more than half of their sentence, prisoners older than 60, and the terminally ill.

The organisation called for parents with dependants to be considered for immediate release.

"If our demands are not met within seven days, we shall call on all SAPOHR members, followers, supporters and sympathisers to embark on rolling mass action in prisons countrywide," said Bhudu.

The Young Communist League said it was "deeply disturbed and outraged" by the release of Mark Scott-Crossley on parole.

The parole of this "monstrous killer" deserved to be condemned by all South Africans, the league said.

"We respect the rule of law, but it is disgusting that there is a continued tendency or a systematic abortion of justice on matters related to the murder of black workers in the country.

"This reinforces our long held belief that the rule of law in this country favours the rich, particularly whites and regards the lives of black workers as shallow and cheap."

Scott-Crossley was on Thursday placed under correctional supervision until completion of his sentence.

In late 2005 Scott-Crossley was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Phalaborwa Circuit Court for assaulting and then throwing former employee Nelson Chisale to the lions.

On 28 September, 2007 the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein set aside Scott-Crossley's murder conviction for the death of Chisale. It substituted five years imprisonment on the lesser offence of being an accessory after the fact.

Sapa