Interdict bid to end harassment of journalists
THE South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) is to apply for an urgent interdict to stop Black First Land First (BLF) from harassing and intimidating journalists.
Sanef had given the group‚ which allegedly has links to the Guptas‚ until noon on Saturday to give assurances that it would stop harassing‚ threatening and assaulting journalists. However‚ the movement declined.
This followed a protest by about 20 BLF members outside the Parkview home of Tiso Blackstar editor-at-large Peter Bruce on Thursday, during which he was threatened over an article he wrote about the Guptas.
BLF members also assaulted Business Day editor Tim Cohen outside the house.
This was followed by a statement by the organisation on Friday threatening a number of white journalists – among them Peter Bruce‚ amaBhungane’s Sam Sole‚ News24 editor Adriaan Basson‚ 702 presenter Stephen Grootes‚ News24 columnist Max du Preez‚ Eyewitness News’s Barry Bateman and Biznews editor Alec Hogg – accusing them of racism‚ publishing fake news and covering up “white corruption under the guise of journalism”.
The organisation also threatened black journalists who “mimick [sic] these white agents of white monopoly capital‚ such as Ferial Haffajee‚ Carima Brown‚ Eusebius McKaiser”.
“Our message to them is that they must repent‚ ask for forgiveness from black people for being used by white monopoly capital,” BLF warned.
“They must stop their askari tendencies or face the possibility of being mistaken for white journalists.” On Saturday‚ Basson tweeted that the organisation was now threatening to go to the house of Katy Katopodis‚ updates editor at Eyewitness News (EWN)‚ and that Sanef was now preparing its interdict application.
EWN quoted Sanef’s Chris Kabwato yesterday as saying the editors’ forum was now taking legal action.
“So‚ we are now moving on to apply for an interdict to stop BLF from harassing the journalists listed‚” Kabwato said.
WE weep for the loss of Suna Venter, a brave and selfless journalist who appears to have been literally hounded to an untimely death after she resisted censorship efforts by her employer, the SABC.
We weep for a media colleague and member of the so-called SABC 8 who had stood up against relentless harassment, culminating in death threats and physical attack, to defend what she knew was right.
And then, tragically, she could resist no more, taken at just 32 last week by a heart condition that can only have been exacerbated by the vile treatment she received after being bold enough to challenge now sacked SABC chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng.
Besides mourning a principled young woman who represented the very best qualities a journalist should have, we also weep for the assaults that have been made of late on the free and independent media in this country.
The sort of scare tactics that were unleashed upon the SABC 8 from the time, last year, when they refused to obey Motsoeneng’s instruction to no longer cover violent protests, were reprehensible.
If Motsoeneng had any conscience to speak of, he would be having sleepless nights right now.
A police investigation must be done to establish exactly who – and what – sat behind the various acts of intimidation and aggression against Venter, from having her car’s brake cables cut and tyres slashed, to getting her flat broken into and being shot in the face with a pellet gun.
On the day Venter died, Tiso Blackstar editor-at-large Peter Bruce was also threatened by protesters at his home in Johannesburg for writing anti-Gupta articles.
Like Venter, he refuses to be muzzled.
Given the deep rot being revealed as more leaked Gupta e-mails emerge, the prospect of further attacks on media freedom unfortunately looms large.