I usually don't like to get involved in local politics and it really does not matter which side of the political fence you sit on. Even
if
you are perched neatly on the top and never get involved (like moi), when freedom
of speech and the freedom of the press is threatened we should all sit up and pay attention! T
There is nothing I detest more than being censored and someone telling me to shut up.
I believe everyone has a voice and everyone should have the right to verbally express their views without being compromised or censored. So, I stood up tall (all five foot of me) and joined this campaign that
Chris Roper and
Sipho Hlongwane are tweeting about on (hashtag) #SpeakZA..
Blogs 4 Free Press
Last week, shocking revelations concerning the
activities of the ANC Youth League spokesperson Nyiko Floyd Shivambu
came to the fore. According to a letter published in various news
outlets, a complaint was laid by 19 political journalists with the
Secretary General of the ANC, against Shivambu. This complaint letter
detailed attempts by Shivambu to leak a dossier to certain journalists,
purporting to expose the money laundering practices of Dumisani Lubisi, a
journalist at the City Press. The letter also detailed the intimidation
that followed when these journalists refused to publish these
revelations.
We condemn in the strongest possible terms the reprisals against
journalists by Shivambu. His actions constitute a blatant attack on
media freedom and a grave infringement on Constitutional rights. It is a
disturbing step towards dictatorial rule in South Africa. We call on
the ANC and the ANC Youth League to distance themselves from the actions
of Shivambu. The media have, time and again, been a vital democratic
safeguard by exposing the actions of individuals who have abused their
positions of power for personal and political gain.
The press have played a vital role in the liberation struggle,
operating under difficult and often dangerous conditions to document
some of the most crucial moments in the struggle against apartheid. It
is therefore distressing to note that certain people within the ruling
party are willing to maliciously target journalists by invading their
privacy and threatening their colleagues in a bid to silence them in
their legitimate work.

We also note the breathtaking hubris displayed by Shivambu and the
ANC Youth League President Julius Malema in their response to the letter
of complaint. Shivambu and Malema clearly have no respect for the media
and the rights afforded to the media by the Constitution of South
Africa. Such a response serves only to reinforce the position that the
motive for leaking the so-called dossier was not a legitimate concern,
but a insolent effort to intimidate and bully a journalist who had
exposed embarrassing information about the Youth League President.
We urge the ANC as a whole to reaffirm its commitment to media freedom
and other Constitutional rights we enjoy as a country.