On 17 February 2000, the board of directors of the Swazi Observer group of papers announced that the paper was being shut down. Chairman of the Board Timothy Nhleko called in the entire staff and in a one-minute address announced that the paper was being closed immediately and that everyone should vacate the premises. In […]
On 17 February 2000, the board of directors of the Swazi Observer group of papers announced that the paper was being shut down. Chairman of the Board Timothy Nhleko called in the entire staff and in a one-minute address announced that the paper was being closed immediately and that everyone should vacate the premises.
In a written statement, management said the closure was due to restructuring and financial reorganisation. However, MISA sources said that at a strategic planning meeting sponsored by the board and shareholders last week, a five year plan was drawn up for the paper. According to the source, there was no indication of financial difficulties at the paper. MISA sources in Swaziland have further reported that the order to close the paper came directly from the royal family.
The sudden closure of the paper was preceded by a concerted campaign, starting in January, to force journalists at the daily “Swazi Observer” to reveal their sources for several articles.
In January this year, the police called in reporter Thulani Mthethwa to explain why he had written a story reporting that the police were hot on the heels of an unnamed suspect linked to a 1998 bomb explosion in the capital. The police were apparently upset by the story and claimed that it had foiled their plans to make an arrest. They also wanted to know the source of the journalist’s story.
On 10 and 11 January, Mthethwa was again called in by the police, this time to get him to reveal the source of an apparent confidential letter that was the subject of an article in the paper. The contentious letter was written by Swaziland’s Police Commissioner, Edgar Hillary, to his South African counterpart, requesting assistance in a drug trafficking case. The journalist refused to give in to the police pressure. On 12 January, Mthethwa was summoned to the attorney general’s office for the same reason, where he again refused to divulge the source. This led to an unsuccessful attempt by the attorney general to get an ex-parte order for the reporter to reveal his source. The High Court judge declined to issue the order and allowed the “Observer” to file a response instead. However, before this could be heard, the “Observer”, acting on legal advice, handed the contentious letter over to the police but refused to reveal the identity of the source who had leaked it to them.
On Tuesday 15 February, Mthethwa, along with his managing editor, Francis Harawa, news editor Musa Magagula, and fellow journalist Thulani Twala were called in for a meeting with the board of
directors, who demanded the identity of the source who leaked the letter. After refusing again to reveal the sources, the managing editor was warned that there would be “devastating” consequences. That same day, the four staff members were called in by the prime minister who also demanded to know the identity of the sources. The journalists again refused.
The “Swazi Observer” group of papers is made up of the “Daily Observer”, the “Weekend Observer”, and “Instantseli”. It was established in May 1982, when it was given as a gift to King Sobhuzu from the late millionaire who headed the multi-national company Londrho. Sobhuzu then entrusted the newspaper to the Tibiyo Takangwane corporation, which is a company owned by the king on behalf of the Swazi nation. After Sobhuzu’s death, the newspaper was left to King Mswati III. Between the three papers, there are 100 staff, including 30 journalists, all of whom have been affected by the closure.
In an unrelated incident, the Inter Press Services (IPS) news agency reported that on 11 February Swazi police arrested the self-proclaimed president of the Swaziland National Progressive Party, Magadeyiwile Mdluli, while he was conducting a lone protest against the country’s twenty-seven year ban of political parties. Mdluli was also prevented from petitioning King Mswati, and was refused entry to the official opening of parliament. Mdluli was held for about an hour before being released.
On the same day, IPS reported that police summoned the leaders of the Swaziland Youth Congress (SWAYOCO) for interrogations over “foreigners” they had invited to their fifth General Congress Meeting. The following morning, SWAYOCO was forced to abandon its Congress after police beat up several delegates outside the venue, forcing them to flee. IPS reported that at least eight delegates were treated for injuries in hospital.
In terms of a Royal Decree issued in 1973, and which suspended the constitution, all political parties are effectively banned in Swaziland.
In 1996, King Mswati appointed a commission to draft a new constitution. The highly controversial commission was scheduled to present a draft constitution to the government in 1998, but it seems this will only happen in 2001.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to authorities:
– strongly condemning the unilateral closure of the three newspapers
– demanding that the board of directors immediately and fully explain the reasons for the closure
– pointing out that in the absence of such explanation, the action seems clearly aimed at punishing those journalists from the “Swazi Observer” who refused to compromise their professional journalistic ethics
– calling on the owners to immediately commit themselves to the principle of editorial independence, and to resist any political pressure aimed at undermining this
– further condemning the police, attorney general and prime minister’s attempts to force the journalists to reveal their confidential sources
– pointing out that the principle of protecting confidential sources is an internationally recognised principle of journalistic ethics, which remains an integral part of the media’s function to properly inform the public
– stating that any attempt to undermine this principle is an attack on media freedom and the public’s right to information
Appeals To
APPEALS TO:
Senator Magwagwa Mdluli
Minister of Public Service and Information
Fax: +268 40 45379
Sibusiso Dlamini
Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Swaziland
Fax: +268 40 43943
Themba Dlamini
Managing Director, Tibiyo Takangwane
Fax: +268 518 4468
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
