Herald reporter leaves Plett home after threats over unrest coverage
A Herald journalist has been forced to vacate her Plettenberg Bay home after intimidating messages were posted on a community WhatsApp group about her coverage of the ongoing clashes between foreign nationals and locals in KwaNokuthula.
A case of intimidation was reported at the KwaNokuthula police station.
The Herald and Weekend Post editor Rochelle de Kock has labelled the alleged intimidation of the 26-year-old woman reporter “unacceptable”.
“As a media organisation, our duty is to cover the news in a manner that is accurate and fair, and to ensure the public is informed; this is a role we take very seriously.
“We view this intimidation as an attack on media freedom.
“It should not be tolerated or be allowed to continue unchallenged,” De Kock said.
“Unfortunately, this is a reflection of the lawlessness that has become commonplace in our society at the moment.
“But if we do not speak up when something is wrong, those who are behind such unruly behaviour become emboldened and their actions intensify.”
Reggy Moalusi, executive director at the SA National Editors’ Forum, said: “Sanef finds the intimidation and threats against journalists unacceptable. We will always condemn this. We will support The Herald as a case has been opened, and we hope law enforcement agencies take appropriate action as a case has been opened.”
The reporter, who is not being named for her own safety and who had written several stories on the volatile situation in the small Garden Route community, was sent a screenshot of messages on Tuesday evening.
The messages, written in isiXhosa, refer to the reporter and anyone calling for calm as “snakes”, and say that they need to be “watched”.
She was mentioned by name and her address published.
KwaNokuthula community leader Welcome Hans said he was unaware of any threatening messages.
He said as a former liberation fighter, he was an advocate for media freedom.
“If true, this is serious and the police must investigate.
“The freedom of journalists must be guaranteed,” Hans said.
He denied that Operation Dudula was taking place in his
community. “We were marching against white businesses only employing foreigners.
“We are saying that foreigners should only be employed for their special skills, this is not about xenophobia.
“Being a petrol attendant, gardening, waitressing and domestic work does not take special skills, yet too many white business owners are still only employing foreigners.
“There is a high rate of unemployment and we are sitting on a ticking time bomb as a country,” he said.
The reporter first reported feeling intimidated on September 1, when she was approached by three women and a man on the N2.
The group had been marching to the Bitou municipality offices to hand over a memorandum containing their concerns over the impact foreign nationals have on their community.
“I was standing on the opposite side of the road when they crossed over and poked me on my body,” the reporter said.
“They then forced me to delete the footage that I had taken of the march.
“They threatened to break my phone if I did not comply.”
The second incident occurred on September 5 at the KwaNokuthula Magistrate’s
Court.
She claimed she was aggressively questioned about what she was doing there.
Then, on Tuesday evening, she received a message from a community member informing her of what was being said on the WhatsApp group.
“The messages hurl insults at anyone who has been fighting for peace in KwaNokuthula,” the reporter said.
“They further defended an alleged Operation Dudula leader in Plettenberg Bay who is out on bail.”
The Herald has a copy of the messages.
The clashes escalated on September 12, when two locals were attacked near a taxi rank in the area after foreign nationals allegedly accosted them at night.
The next day, the homes of two foreign nationals were torched.
De Kock said: “We will protect our reporters against vicious attacks and we call on the police to investigate the matter.
“There can’t be holy cows or topics that are off-limits when reporting on the news.
“And if we fail in our duties to uphold the Press Code, there are mechanisms in place to hold us to account.
“Resorting to intimidation and threats of violence can never be an acceptable means of seeking recourse.”