Date: 08 November 2002

Etv's documentary on Palestine and the censorship attempts by the pro-Israeli lobby

The Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI) has today strongly condemned attempts by the pro-Israeli lobby to stop John Pilger's documentary 'Palestine is still the Issue' from being screened on South Africa's free to air Television channel Etv. This documentary was broadcast on the evening of November 6 2002 between 8:00-10:30pm. It exposes pervasive Israeli atrocities in occupied Palestine and the deep humiliation and degradation to which the Israeli government has subjected innocent and defenseless Palestinians.

The FXI also said it was extremely disturbed by reports that the South African Jewish Board of Deputies had, prior to the screening of the documentary, petitioned the Broadcasting Complaints Commission of South Africa to impose a prior ban against its flighting.

Furthermore, the FXI observed that in addition to these outrageous attempts, Debra Patta who is the producer of 3rd Degree, Etv's current affairs programme that screened the documentary had been subjected to intimidation, harassment, hate mail, physical threats and accusations of racism and anti-Semitism. The FXI stated that it cannot help but observe with distaste that the SAJBD has not distanced itself from these appalling acts, neither has it called on its members to refrain from such calumny.

The FXI argued that though the SAJBD and other pro-Israeli lobbies claim that the documentary has been discredited elsewhere for its 'inaccuracy', they have not disproved the fact that it was submitted to a rigorous test by a committee of five Jewish experts on the conflict before being screened on UK's Carlton TV. The experts found the documentary to be reflective of the situation in Palestine. The FXI said that for convenient reasons apparently, the pro-Israel lobby has forgotten to mention that Michael Green, the head of Carlton TV was heavily criticised by his own colleagues at the TV network for attempting to tarnish the film's factual and historical probity.

The FXI noted that the SAJBD has been party to a range of undemocratic acts including silencing commentary against Israel, intimidating people and orchestrating the invasion of the University of Witwatersrand's Johannesburg College of Education, during an address by former Israeli Foreign Affairs Minister Shimon Peres in September 2002.

The FXI firmly cautioned the SAJBD including other pro-Israeli lobbies against their illegal and intimidatory practices on the Palestinian question. It also asked the SAJBD to come alive to the fact that Israel's illegal occupation of Palestine, which has been condemned by a multitude of UN Resolutions, must be immediately brought to an end. Palestinians have a right to freely express themselves in their struggle for self-determination, while the media has a right and a duty to highlight the atrocities being committed against them.

The FXI observed that freedom of expression is impossible under the sort of colonial conditions, which Israel has imposed on the Palestinians and called for an immediate end to Israel's persistent attacks against independent Palestinian journalists. It also noted that the new Israeli cabinet has among its members, individuals who have been fingered for war crimes in Palestine such as Prime Minister Sharon and the new Defence Minister Shaul Moffaz who was recently cited by Amnesty International for atrocities in Nablus and Jenin.

The FXI said it will remain steadfast in articulating the right to freedom of expression in South Africa and beyond, and will not shy away from directly engaging with any individual or institution which attempt to impose censorship on forms of expression and ideas that they do not agree with.

The FXI called upon the BCCSA to exercise its fullest mandate in defence of media freedom in South Africa and to not concede to demands from the pro-Israeli lobby or any other forum that seeks to violate the right to freedom of expression in the country.