South Africa: SACP Calls for Debate On Tribunal

Johannesburg — AN INDEPENDENT media tribunal and media self-regulation should be seen as complementary, the South African Communist Party (SACP) said yesterday. It called for a "calm and considered discussion around how sensitive information should be handled within our democracy". SACP general secretary Blade Nzimande said the media's deliberate conflation of the media tribunal and the Protection of Information Bill had undermined the possibility of this discussion.

"The two things are not the same. The media is confusing the public on two very important debates we must have," he said.

 

Dr Nzimande was briefing the media on the party's central committee meeting at the weekend.

 

"What often passes for 'investigative' journalism is really the wholesale leaking of sensitive, often unprocessed intelligence and criminal investigation material.

 

"We cannot blame the media for using this material, although often there is little attempt to double-check or seek balance. The prime blame must rest with those involved in making these leaks," he told journalists.

 

Dr Nzimande said that, on occasion, genuine whistle-blowers had made material available to the media, but recent leaks were about the "very dangerous political" factionalism of intelligence and criminal justice institutions.

 

"The media has not been innocent," he said.

 

Dr Nzimande said the central committee recommended that a proposed media tribunal should be independent of party-political, government and narrow commercial media "interference".

 

The tribunal should not be used for pre-publication censorship and should not be appointed by Parliament.

 

It should also deal only with appeals, and a selection panel for the tribunal should include media representatives.

 

The SACP central committee wants six-monthly reports on the tribunal's activities to be tabled in Parliament.

 

-August 30, 2010 by Jocelyn Newmarch

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Source: allafrica.com/stories/201008300098.html (accessed on 30.08.10)