(MISA/IFEX) – On 23 January 2003, two South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) journalists were allegedly assaulted and held captive by teachers at a school near Lomanyaneng, North West Province. Radio reporters Lexi Herholdt and Nthabiseng Makhongoana told MISA’s South African chapter (MISA-SA) that they were investigating a story about a school principal who refused to […]
(MISA/IFEX) – On 23 January 2003, two South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) journalists were allegedly assaulted and held captive by teachers at a school near Lomanyaneng, North West Province. Radio reporters Lexi Herholdt and Nthabiseng Makhongoana told MISA’s South African chapter (MISA-SA) that they were investigating a story about a school principal who refused to give students their report cards because of non-payments of school fees.
The journalists said that after interviewing the students concerned, they were followed by the entire school staff and approached by two teachers who assaulted them. The reporters told MISA-South Africa that “the [staff] then locked the school gate and ordered us to go to the office. There they demanded to listen to the tape recording of the interviews with the students.” The teachers then threatened to beat the journalists if they refused to hand over the tape.
The journalists reported the incident to local police. Lomanyaneng Police Station Inspector Khumiso Seketema told MISA-SA that a “case of robbery, intimidation and common assault was filed against the suspects and the matter will be referred to the director of public prosecutions upon completion of our investigation.”
MISA-SA strongly condemns the intimidation of journalists on duty, characterising it as a “contravention of citizens’ right to receive information.” MISA-SA appeals to local communities to ensure the safety of journalists, rather than practice censorship by intimidation. “Communities should realize that media freedom, which is guaranteed in the constitution, is an essence of democratic society,” the organisation notes.
