Justice Malala and Mondli Makhanya apologise unreservedly to Haffajee

OVER the past week, debate has raged about the publication in Sowetan of a column by Eric Miyeni in which he launched a personal and vociferous attack on Ferial Haffajee, editor of City Press newspaper.

Sowetan is an institution.

Founded after the bannings of numerous iconic South African newspapers in the late 1970s, it built itself up through the decades as a voice for the voiceless and a fearless, reliable friend of the poor and oppressed.

Sowetan is founded on the values of ubuntu-botho (humanity, humaneness). It is a newspaper that fought for and is committed to the nurturing of a united, non-racial, non-sexist and democratic South Africa as enshrined in our Constitution.

As we have asserted this week,Sowetan is committed to free, fair and robust debate.

We have also pointed out that Eric Miyeni expresses robust views shared by many South Africans.

However, the expression of these views should not be accompanied by the promotion of or incitement to violence against those who hold differing views.

In his latest column Miyeni crossed the line between robust debate and the condonation of violence.

The necklacing of people during the dark days of apartheid was condemned by all progressive forces in our country.

If there is something to be ashamed of in the history of our country and the struggle against apartheid, it is the senseless, abhorrent act of necklacing.

In his column Miyeni condoned this act.

Sowetan cannot and will not allow itself to be party to the condonation of such acts.

To do so is to allow our fine and noble newspaper to take the first steps towards what happened in Rwanda in 1994, when media outlets were used to incite people to violence.

We are proud that the editors of Sowetan, led by acting editor Len Maseko, swiftly and decisively discontinued this column.

Len Maseko has been acting editor of Sowetan for just more than four months.

He has done a sterling job in stabilising the newspaper.

Maseko was not at work on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and did not see the Miyeni column.

However, Maseko has accepted full responsibility for the publication of the column and has resigned from his position as acting editor of the newspaper.

We have accepted his resignation.

We have appointed Mpumelelo Mkhabela, currently editor of the Daily Dispatch, as the new editor of Sowetan with immediate effect.

We have instituted disciplinary proceedings against those who allowed the column to appear in the form that it did.

We are also implementing measures to ensure that this does not happen again.

We acknowledge that as the heated debate over the Miyeni column continued, we did not respond publicly.

For this we apologise unreservedly. Our readers, and the public, deserve to know. We commit ourselves to ensuring regular updates.

Finally, deep hurt has been caused not only to Ms Haffajee but to the wider South African public by the publication of this column.

For this we apologise unreservedly to Ms Haffajee and to all South Africans.

We value debate, but do not condone incitement to violence.

• Malala is General Manager: Sowetan and Sunday World. Makhanya is Editor in Chief: Avusa Publications