The Black Friday demonstration organised outside the SABC's Auckland Park offices.
Dalaine Krige, 21, addressed students at Stellenbosch University’s Rooiplein on Friday at lunchtime, along with Professor Lizette Rabe, as part of an SRC-organised protest against censorship at the SABC.
Krige said she was immensely proud of her father, Foeta. He and seven colleagues were fired on Monday and Tuesday for disagreeing with the broadcaster’s policy to no longer show footage of violent protests. COO Hlaudi Motsoeneng announced the decision in May.
“I’m so proud of him. I believe he’s doing the right thing,” she said, as rain fell.
“My mom is a journalist, my dad is a journalist and my sister is a journalist, and within our family we often have debates and discussions.
“With all the recent controversy surrounding the SABC, I asked my dad why he didn’t leave. What makes somebody stay loyal to an organisation that is riddled with corruption and crumbling at the foundations?
“He said, ‘Never confuse the SABC with the person in charge. The SABC is not Hlaudi Motsoeneng, and the SABC is not any one individual. The SABC is, and always will be, an amazing place to work. And it’s our place. The SABC belongs to each person who works there, and to the people of South Africa’.”
Staff held hostage for a long time
Her dad had worked at the SABC for 24 years, she said, and it was “his home”. He had seen nine different CEOs at the broadcaster since 1994, not including acting chief executives.
“But that home has been infiltrated by a corrupt few,” the international studies student continued.
“My dad and his colleagues have been held hostage in their own living room for a long, long time, forced at gunpoint to turn on family and friends.
“But a couple of the hostages have been allowed to escape. My dad, and seven of his brave colleagues managed to sound the alarm and let the world know what was happening.”
Krige said her father and other journalists had kept the SABC afloat through the years through sheer loyalty.
Working behind the scenes
The eight were being accused of bringing the SABC into disrepute, painting it in a negative light, and tarnishing its good name. This was not true, she said.
“They are the people who have been working behind the scenes to maintain the good name that the SABC has built. They are the people who tried to rebuild the trustworthiness and reputation of the newsroom again.”
Student Representative Council vice chairperson James de Villers said Friday’s event was organised by concerned students who wanted to take a stand for journalistic freedom and integrity across the country.
The eight SABC journalists are currently battling their dismissals in the Labour Court in Johannesburg, and have also applied for direct access to the Constitutional Court.
A fundraising campaign had been set up to help the eight while their case was ongoing.
To date, the fund has raised almost R380 000 in three days. Donate to the cause here.
News24