Defenders of freedom in South Africa are deeply worried these days. The health of one of the world’s most celebrated democracies, which emerged after decades of struggle against apartheid, is under threat. And any rollback of freedom here will have profoundly negative consequences for other nascent democracies across Africa.
Last week, the ruling African National Congress used its legislative majority to pass the Protection of State Information Bill in one of the two houses of Parliament. If signed into law, the “secrecy bill,” as many here call it, would criminalize the possession and disclosure of classified information, no matter by whom, and no matter why.… Seguir leyendo »
On Tuesday morning my friend Stefaans Brummer, arguably South Africa's best investigative journalist, sent me a text message. "When I'm incarcerated at Parkview police station, please bring me coffee, a muffin and a hacksaw blade," he wrote. I don't do coffee or muffins, I replied jokingly, but I might deliver the hacksaw.
It was easy banter between friends, but there was a chill in our bones. Last Friday Brummer's newspaper, the Mail & Guardian, had been prevented by President Jacob Zuma's spokesman from publishing a story. It had alleged that the spin doctor had lied to investigators about his role in the taking of bribes in South Africa's notoriously crooked arms acquisition in the late 1990s.… Seguir leyendo »
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