/ 19 September 2007

Sanef, SABC meet to discuss impasse

Delegations from the South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) and the South African Broadcasting Corporation met in Johannesburg on Monday, Sanef said in a statement released on Wednesday.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the contents of a letter SABC group CEO Dali Mpofu sent to Sanef on August 31, announcing that the broadcaster had broken ties with the editors’ forum.

At the meeting, Sanef responded to the contents of the letter from Mpofu.

After deliberations, the participants agreed that the SABC would elaborate in writing on the four substantive issues that it identified as being at the root of the problem between the two organisations.

The delegations agreed to meet again for Sanef to respond ”and for the parties to work towards a possible resolution of these issues and hopefully a normali[s]ation of relations in the future,” Sanef said.

After receiving the letter, Sanef chairperson Jovial Rantao would not elaborate on the letter’s contents but SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said the group chief executive and the board had written a letter to Rantao withdrawing its membership.

”We are withdrawing from the membership of Sanef. We will consider it [our membership] once issues raised [in the letter] have been dealt with,” said Kganyago.

‘Whipping boy’

The Saturday Star reported that the SABC had broken ranks with the forum in protest over its stance on Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang and the publication of her medical records.

In the letter, the SABC said it would no longer stand idle ”whilst we are being made a whipping boy and a scapegoat by the profit-driven media.

”Even less are we prepared to associate with the enemies of our freedom and our people.

”We cannot remain quiet while our mothers and our democratically chosen leaders are stripped naked for the sole reason of selling newspapers,” the paper reported. – Sapa