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Sanef wants govt muscle
08/02/2004 20:06 - (SA)
Johannesburg - South African editors are to seek a meeting with the department of foreign affairs to express concern over the recent court ruling that has closed the Daily News in Zimbabwe.
Henry Jeffreys, chair of the South African National Editors' Forum (Sanef) said editors meeting in Cape Town on Sunday strongly condemned the Zimbabwean Supreme Court ruling and called for urgent reconsideration of the judgement.
He said Sanef had called on the South African government to condemn the decision as it not only contravened the freedom of expression principles of Zimbabwe's constitution, but also those contained in protocols adopted by the South African Development Community (SADC) and the African Union (AU).
He said the Zimbabwean Court held that the Access to Information and the Promotion of Privacy Act, which forced newspapers to register and journalists to be accredited with the government-appointed media and information commission, did not violate constitutional rights of free expression.
"One judge dissented, maintaining the view of the Independent Journalists' Association of Zimbabwe that the media laws could in fact contravene these rights. Sanef views the judgement as placing Zimbabwean journalists under direct control of the government, which effectively spells the death knell of independent journalism in Zimbabwe," said Jeffreys.
"This view is also held by numerous international organisations which have also protested against the judgement."
- SAPA
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