Tribunal will protect the poor - Zuma
PRESIDENT Jacob Zuma says the proposed media appeal tribunal will be the only recourse for poor people if defamed by the media.
"Many South Africans are poor. They can't get a lawyer to defend them. What happens to them? Are we still perpetuating the situation that the poor will always suffer because they are poor? Because here they will have an institution to go to," Zuma told Parliament yesterday.
Zuma said the mere threat that the tribunal would be set up was already making the media behave better.
"Since the debate (started) there have been more apologies from the media," said Zuma.
He said "even the media has admitted that the South African media has gone above the line in the Constitution".
The ANC is calling for the establishment of the tribunal to deal with wrongful reporting by journalists. It argues that self-regulation institutions such as the Press Council and the Press Ombudsman are inefficient to deal with errant journalists.
The proposed tribunal has been slammed by both the media and other civil society organisations who have described the move as an attempt by the ruling party to stifle investigative journalism that exposes corruption by politicians.
Yesterday, DA parliamentary leader Athol Trollip said some of Zuma's comments on media freedom were similar to those made in 1973 by former apartheid prime minister John Vorster.
Cope's Anele Mda demanded that Zuma explain how government could be seen as "eager and determined to defend the independence of the media" in the light of the recent arrest of Sunday Times journalist Mzilikazi Wa Afrika last month.
The charges against wa Afrika were dropped yesterday.
"Certainly the ANC will defend the rights of the media. That does not make us succumb to what we believe is unfair reporting," Zuma said.
Sageville
What bull, how many times do poor individuals find themselves slandered in the papers?This MAT is designed to intimidate journalists, not protect the poor.
If costs are an issue then allow free access to the current Media ombudsmans for those unable to afford it.
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Mabhekana
Ordinary South African citizens don't attract the media. It is the corrupt officials, be in government or businesses who do. Therefore its not true that the ANC wants to protect the poor from wrong reporting. Going back to the apartheid times!!!Report Abuse
Mosito
Gentlemen you are right.....Zuma is just saving his skin and those of the ANC corrupt....I dont remember one case where an ordinary citizen has been wrongly reported about in the press...it's always the corrupt that are exposed and are written about, and the politicians that never fulfill the promises they gave to the people to vote for them....this man is lying! period.....Report Abuse
lesegog
Sageville, how are you sure if it's for intimidating journos? And don't you know that the punishment you get from the ombudsman is to just to apologise?Report Abuse
Sageville
@lesegogWell lets see, the MAT would be assigned by government (hence will be influenced/pressured by them). The MAT is designed (according to government) to punish irresponsible journalism.
That means as soon as Journos report on corrupt politicians those, same corrupt politicians can pressure the MAT to hold a hearing on that journo. If it works similar to other government bodies (e.g. NPA) those investigations will not go the Journos way regardless of the truth, either sending them to jail or tying them up in protracted litigation.
Regardless of what you or I may think, the MAT is NOT independent, there would be NO media representation on the MAT so it's all one sided. aiming to put Journos behind bars or not.
How would that NOT intimidate a Journo?
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Mahikeng
Everyday I loose more & more interest in the ruling party because of these lies, cheats and stealings. JZ must not play with us here - he knows for sure that their hands, hearts and souls are full of rust due to illegal and immoral activities; and that journos are busy exposing that.Now they want to operate like apartheid regime to silence the media. What makes me angry about our president is that he says this so-called tribunal will protect the poor. What kind of sick joke is that?
Please South Africans next year during local govt elections let us not vote with our stomachs or whatsover because this alliance will come again and pretend as if they are singing from the same hymn sheet whereas they are not just to steal your vote and continue messing up the country.
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Sageville
If people feel the current Press Ombudsbad is regarded as toothless, give him some teeth to send bad journos to jail, but don't remove the Media's representation.My point is the current Ombudsman can be changed to be more aggressive and more accessible to the poor (lol). It would also be regarded as fair, unlike what the international opinions of the proposed MAT are.
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AfricansRule
Thank you guys for seeing through this evil President of South Africa Jacob Zuma. How dare he blatantly LIE to the nation and the whole world! THIS IS A LIE! A BIG FAT LIE!When has a poor person ever been defamed by media? When Jacob?
You have been caught with your pants down (I mean this is every sphere). You are a CORRUPT, EVIL, GREEDY, SELFISH BIGOT, who doesn't give a damn about the poor.
Finally South Africa & the world have caught on, that you are not deserving of being a president. You must just step down
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Idohl
Lord have mercy on us. When exactly is the ANC ever going to stop abusing the poor in every scheme they plot. The poor this, the poor that! Are the poor so cheap that the ANC feels it can use them in whatever way that they deem fit. I think the ANC realised the poor are the most uninformed and uneducated group that will agree to anything that is said by the ANC, that's why they drag them even into issues that are far away from them. Mr. President, the poor don't care less about buying a copy of even Daily Sun, let alone of being wronged by the media. All they care about is putting a loaf of bread on the table and then planning about how to get it tomorrow. So please don't give us that.Report Abuse