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Media
Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Statement to the ACHPR
on the state of Media in Southern Africa, Nigeria
The Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Regional Secretariat
based in Windhoek, Namibia welcomes this opportunity to address
Commissioners of the Africa Commission on Human and Peoples
Rights (ACHPR). MISA appreciates and commends the work of
the Commission in strengthening human rights and democratic
values in Africa, and efforts to find African solutions to
African problems.
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It is now 17 years after the Windhoek Declaration
and 5 years after this Commission passed a Declaration of Principles
on Freedom of Expression in Africa, at its 32nd Session in October,
2002. Sadly media and freedom of expression rights are still
in peril in Southern Africa.
Southern Africa states that were
once seen as progressive, including Tanzania, Botswana, Malawi
and South Africa are facing challenges observing and respecting
basic media and freedom of expression rights. We express concern
at the increasing use of sanctions such as banning newspapers
and broadcasting stations to punish what governments call wayward
behaviour by the media. In Tanzania the government closed down
Mwanahalisi newspaper on 13 October without a hearing, without
identifying complainants, but simply stating that the publication
had offended the ruling party and Tanzania’s first family.
As MISA we acknowledge the unalienable right of those aggrieved
by the media to seek recourse and we note that in the case of
Mwanahalisi this matter was not brought before the Media Council
of Tanzania.
We express concern at statements by Tanzania’s
Minister of Information Captain George Mkuchika, that the ban
on the newspaper is a warning to other media and also that the
government does not care abut the private media as it has its
own media. In Malawi the government is fighting to ban Joy Radio
station while in Lesotho Harvest FM is just back from serving
a 3 months ban for allegedly defaming senior government officials.
Punitive measures are meted without due regard to the rights
of the media and citizens who access this media daily. We urge
the Commission to address these issues with the governments of
Tanzania, Lesotho and Malawi.
MISA also expresses concern at
the management issues at the South Africa Broadcasting Corporation
(SABC) which in our view border on political interference in
the running of the broadcaster. We are also concerned that governments
continue to maintain a tight grip on national broadcasters despite
calls for transformation into public broadcasters. We further
note with concern the intentions by the Botswana government to
pass a Media Practitioners law that follows Zimbabwe’s
infamous Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
The Media Practitioners Bill requires journalists to be registered
and also imposes a statutory media council. We believe this law
will seriously undermine the rights of journalist and the media
to operate freely in Botswana.
MISA remains concerned with the situation in Zimbabwe where the
political and economic situation remains dire. We remain concerned
about the use of the state media to propagate hate messages and
the absence of moves to repeal bad media laws including AIPPA,
the broadcasting law, the Interception of Communications Act
and the Public Order and Security Act. These laws continue to
be used against journalists who still face challenges working
in Zimbabwe. In Swaziland the government continues to exert pressure
on the media to tow the line and criticism of the government,
especially the King is frowned upon. Freedom of expression and
association rights are being suppressed in Swaziland.
On 13 October
the Swaziland government banned a planned Africa Social Forum
meeting. A statement by the government said that hosting the
Forum would not be in the national interest “and will compromise
peace, security and stability of the country”. The Africa
Social Forum is an annual gathering of civic society organizations
in Africa to discuss and share ideas on socio-economic issues
affecting Africa.
As MISA we are concerned about the handling of the media by governments
around elections. We note that while the private media is vilified,
the state media is simply turned into mouthpieces of the ruling
parties and governments. We therefore urge the commission to
take a special interest in the elections coming in Namibia, Mozambique,
Malawi, South Africa and Botswana in 2009. We urge the commission
to keep an eye on the situation in Zimbabwe and Swaziland. And
more importantly to urge the government of Tanzania to lift the
ban on Mwanahalisi newspaper.
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