South Africa today marks the solemn anniversary of Black Wednesday, a pivotal day in the nation's history when the apartheid regime clamped down on the press, leading to the banning of publications and the arrest of prominent journalists and activists.
On this day in 1977, The World and Weekend World, two influential anti-apartheid newspapers, were silenced, and their editor, Percy Qoboza, was detained under the notorious Internal Security Act.
As South Africans commemorate this day, which has been officially designated as National Press Freedom Day, its significance extends beyond mere remembrance; it serves as an opportunity to reflect on the state of press freedom in the country since the advent of democracy in 1994.
In 1977, the apartheid government used censorship, detention, and intimidation to suppress voices critical of the regime.
The banning of newspapers and the detention of journalists and activists were blatant violations of the right to free expression and the public's right to access information.
Fast forward to 2023, and South Africa has come a long way in its journey towards a free and independent press.
Reporters Without Borders 2023 World Press Freedom Index places South Africa at 25th out of 180 countries - above the United Kingdom at 26 and Australia at 27.
The USA was 45th, while Norway ranked first for the seventh year in a row and at the bottom of the list was North Korea.
“South Africa guarantees press freedom and has a well-established culture of investigative journalism,” the report said.
However it noted: “In recent years, journalists have often been subjected to verbal attacks from political leaders and activists… Political tension sometimes gives rise to disinformation or smear campaigns against media outlets, especially on social media. The ruling African National Congress (ANC) has at times resorted to such campaigns, but those waged by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), one of the opposition parties, are by far the most virulent. Its leaders and supporters do not hesitate to incite violence and accuse certain journalists of racism.”
Since the end of apartheid, South Africa has witnessed significant improvements in press freedom. The country's post-apartheid constitution enshrines the right to freedom of the press and the media's role in holding the government accountable.
A robust and diverse media landscape has emerged, with a multitude of publications, television stations, and online platforms offering a wide range of perspectives and voices.
The Reporters Without Borders report however said: “Very high operating costs hold back the development of small, independent media outlets, which have been decimated by the worst economic downturn in decades resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic. The Ramaphosa presidency is often accused of using the government’s considerable discretionary powers to favour certain media outlets through advertising expenditure.”
William Bird, the Director at Media Monitoring Africa said that South African media freedom agreed that South Africa had come a long way since the dark days of the 70’s.
“It's chalk and cheese from where we were. There are challenges in many respects but compared to where we are now, we are infinitely developed,” Bird said.
“I think we have a somewhat diverse media sector but the big threats to it now isn’t coming from politics, it's coming from changes in business and the overall financial sustainability. Another big threat comes from disinformation. If you just look at the amount of media out there now, taking social media into account, it kind of puts an added weight on the shoulders of big media companies to put out solid and credible information,” said Bird.
Sithembiso Khulus, the National Coordinator at Right2Know said that after the fall of apartheid, a more independent and robust media came to the fore.
“Remember investigative journalism was not really prevalent during the old government, people were being arrested and targeted for stuff they wrote. Also when it comes to the news reporting, in terms of print and radio, a lot of the media was sensitised by the government… But even nowadays, when it comes to reporting, there is still some level of control. Government still has censorship over some areas, and also media houses are not well funded to do their job. So those aspects could improve,” Khuluse said.
Samkelo Mokhine, the Executive Director of Freedom of Expression said there was still some work to do.
“I do think there is still a lot more to be done in terms of the diversity in the media landscape. I think it's not as varied as it should be. For instance, if all of the information comes from a few houses, and they sort of have control, then that is not an ideal situation," Mokhine said.
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