A vibrant press is the lifeblood of any democratic society. Its role is to ensure checks and balances, hold the government accountable for decisions it makes on behalf of its citizens and give a voice to the most marginalised in society.
The Constitution is unequivocal in its protection of a free press. The writers of that important document understood a free press came at a great cost with some anti-apartheid activists having paid with their lives fighting for the protection of an independent media.
This brief scenario then sets the scene for South Africans to not only appreciate the journey of the country’s free press but to ensure that there is no repeat of Black Wednesday under a democratic dispensation.
Saturday marked 47 years since the apartheid government banned the Weekend World and The World, and detained its editor Percy Gqoboza in an attempt to conceal its inhumane acts following the coverage of Steve Biko’s murder in September 1977.
Elsewhere in the world, in particular Palestine, journalists are being killed by the hundreds for shining the light on the Israel government’s atrocities and human rights violations.
Here at home, we commemorate Black Wednesday in a sombre mood presented by economic challenges saddling the media, which have necessitated the permanent closure of some of the country’s respected publications and leading to unemployment of journalists.
The situation is further complicated by the involvement of some of the country’s banks in attempting to silence the black-owned Independent Media, one of the country’s largest print media organisations.
The company believes its critical reporting on the current administration has ruffled feathers with powerful politicians who now use the banks to shut down a critical voice in the South African media landscape.
Such attempts must be condemned and prevented from ever seeing the light of day.
If anything, every effort should be made to preserve the role of our media, whether we agree or disagree with the views presented by it.
That is what democracy demands and that’s what the country owes the activists who died fighting for a free press.
Cape Times