The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) should explain why it postponed a documentary on President Thabo Mbeki scheduled to be screened last week.
This was the view of the Democratic Alliance and the Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI), which issued separate statements on Friday.
”Given the content of the documentary, the decision to pull the documentary at the very last minute has the look and the feel of self-censorship,” read an FXI statement.
”It can hardly be coincidental that the most troubling editorial decisions the SABC has made recently relate to the controversies surrounding the president and the former and current deputy presidents.
”Any reasonable person would join the dots and infer that the SABC is acting in this manner because it is pro-Thabo Mbeki and anti-Jacob Zuma.”
The institute said this was not a conspiracy theory but a ”reasonable inference to draw under the circumstances”.
The DA challenged the SABC to persuade the public that the problems leading to the programme being postponed were professional and not political.
”Tensions in the tripartite alliance are at breaking point.
”Given the SABC’s track record of political compliance, the pulling of a programme of this nature instantly invites suspicion of political interference.”
The FXI noted that it was the second time recently that a scheduled programme had been pulled at the eleventh hour.
”The first incident involved an ‘Asikhulume’ interview.”
The institute noted that another documentary, on soccer administrator Irvin Khoza, was altered by removing the most controversial part from the film. – Sapa