South Africa’s largest journalist union believes its members should not be forced to testify in court cases
Pule waga Mabe
The South African Union of Journalists (SAUJ) has slammed the South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) for signing a record of understanding with the National Directorate of Public Prosecutions and the ministers of safety and security and justice on the issuing of subpoenas to journalists.
At its congress last weekend, the SAUJ condemned the move by the National Directorate of Public Prosecutions to subpoena Cape photographer Benny Gool to testify for the state in the trial for the murder of gang leader Rashaad Staggie.
The SAUJ said Sanef posed as the only organisation representing journalists in South Africa when they signed the agreement with police and prosecuting authorities.
”This agreement grossly undermines the principles of free media and our ethics, this agreement does not bind SAUJ” reads a resolution passed at the SAUJ congress.
Sechaba ka Nkosi, a senior political journalist at the Mail & Guardian, who was re-elected president of the SAUJ, said the union supports Gool’s position of refusing to testify in the Staggie case.
”While journalists conform with all laws that govern the public, information they get from sources during the execution of their professional duties should not be forced out of them by any institution,” says Ka Nkosi.
Ka Nkosi says the SAUJ has been discussing campaigns that will help Gool to evade arrest. ”We agree with Gool that journalists should not, at any given point, be made to look like security spies or agents in the eyes of the public,” he says.
”It would not only endanger their lives, it will also make people reluctant to give information in the future and that will result in critical information not passing through to its recipients the public.”
While relations between SAUJ and Sanef are not sour, Ka Nkosi emphasised the need for a meeting between the two to discuss areas of common understanding in the future.
Sanef said it agreed the state should not use journalists as ”freelance information gatherers for the police” and supported Gool’s stand.
”We have signed a record of agreement with those concerned in the case, to approach us in case they need information from journalists,” said Mathata Tsedu, Sanef president.
The SAUJ congress also discussed press freedom across the continent, and took a firm stand on Zimbabwe.
The union resolved to send delegates to Zimbabwe on a fact-finding mission to determine the exact nature of the problems and what should be done to help realise press freedom there.
The SAUJ also argued that in the past month there have been increasing attacks on the media in South Africa, with journalists labelled as right-wing conspirators in plot to undermine blacks and President Thabo Mbeki.
Delegates condemned the authors of an advertisement recently published in the Sunday Times by a group of black business leaders in support of Mbeki as ”slandering” journalists.
The SAUJ, which organises mainly journalists and editorial workers, has about 1 000 members and is recruiting membership in new media such as e.tv and online publications.
l African Eye News Service reports that Swaziland’s government on Wednesday banned two of the kingdom’s most outspoken publications for the second time this month.
Extraordinary Government Gazette Legal Notice 76 said that the Nation magazine and weekly Guardian newspaper were prejudicial to the interests of public order because they did not operate in accordance with Swazi law.
The government also banned the distribution of any related publications or supplements to either the Guardian or Nation.