×

We've got news for you.

Register on SowetanLIVE at no cost to receive newsletters, read exclusive articles & more.
Register now

Media24 apologises for apartheid role

File Photo
File Photo

The CEO of publishing giant Media24 has for the first time officially apologised for the complicity of the company and its predecessor‚ Nasionale Pers‚ in the apartheid system.

Speaking at a gala dinner in Cape Town to celebrate the centenary of the company’s flagship daily Die Burger at the weekend‚ Esmare Weideman said that although Media24 has much to be proud about‚ it also has to hang its head in shame about its past.

“Tonight‚ we celebrate our successes with pride‚ and acknowledge our failures with humility. We acknowledge complicity in a morally indefensible political regime and the hurtful way in which this played out in our newsrooms and boardrooms‚” Weideman told the well-heeled audience of 800 people.

“Conrad Sidego‚ first black reporter at Die Burger and currently mayor of Stellenbosch‚ could tell you how he had to walk all the way to the Grand Parade to relieve himself because he was not allowed to use the toilets in the building. Decades of suffering and humiliation is contained in that anecdote. For this we officially apologise tonight‚” said Weideman.

She said the company had learnt from the experience by publishing titles for all South Africans‚ including in markets not served by media titles before.

Weideman committed the company to transformation on race and sex‚ to the rejection of social and political constraints‚ and to the promotion of equity and freedom of speech going into the future.

Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.