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Sanef 'consulting lawyers'
08/12/2005 08:46 - (SA)
Johannesburg - The SA National Editors Forum (Sanef) is consulting editors and lawyers on the media's exclusion from former deputy president Jacob Zuma's court appearance.
Sanef executive committee member Liz Barratt said Sanef was "consulting the editors on the way forward".
Sanef is also consulting lawyers on the legality of barring the media from the courtroom.
Reporters were barred from attending Zuma's court appearance at the Johannesburg magistrate's court on Tuesday. They were also not allowed immediate access to the docket.
Sanef chairman Joe Thloloe expressed his concern: "Zuma appeared in court long before the normal hours that are set aside by the court. In fact, he was sneaked into court. While he was there and the media thought they must try and cover the case, they were barred from covering the case by the police and his own bodyguards."
NPA sympathises with media
The Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI) said the police's actions were "absurd" and "smacked of collusion" to shield Zuma from further public embarrassment.
FXI executive director Jane Duncan said the police and the area commissioner had "abused their positions of authority to prevent the media's right to report on the proceedings freely and without interference".
The South Africa Chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa-SA) charged: "This is blatant interference in the constitutional duties of the media to report judicial proceedings and the appearance in court of alleged offenders."
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said it sympathised with the media.
NPA spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi said: "We would sympathise with the fact that the media was frustrated in that they couldn't get pictures of that appearance."
The NPA distanced itself from the media's barring from the courtroom, saying it never prevented journalists from attending proceedings.
Nkosi said the media had not been notified of Zuma's scheduled court appearance in deference to Zuma's rights, and a desire to cause minimal disruption to other court proceedings.
The hearing was held at 08:00, before normal court time, for the same reason.
- SAPA
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