ACCESS TO INFORMATION - "The Star" on November 01 reported that a warrant of arrest was issued for Louis Maloma, who blew the whistle on an alleged pilot scam on October 31. It was issued by the Pretoria Magistrate's Court after he failed to appear in court. Maloma should have been sentenced that day but was missing when the investigating officer went to fetch him. He had pleaded guilty earlier to a charge of fraud and admitted he had access to the papers for his licence examinations. The case was postponed until November 13.

CORRUPTION - " The Star" reported on November 2 that the media and Ombudsmen were geared to fighting the same battle against corruption , and there was a need for co-operation between the two. Mathatha Tsedu, chairperson of the South African National Editor's Forum, who was addressing the 7th conference of the International Ombudsman Institute in Durban on November 1 said that while the media saw itself as a watchdog for society, ombudsmen watched over public institutions, employees and leaders on behalf of the society. "In many instances, the media did the digging and public protectors moved in later". He urged the ombudsmen to be media friendly and said that once an issue was brought to the office, it should be announced to the media to give the investigation some publicity. Public Protector Selby Baqwa, however, raised reservations about how the media often disregarded the concept that a person was innocent until proven guilty. Tsedu said that there were institutions where those who felt offended could seek relief.

DEFAMATION - South African Press Agency reported on November 1 that Robert Mugabe's government said it was pressing charges of "criminal defamation " against two leading independent newspapers,"Daily News" and "The Standard" after reporting that Mugabe had been successfully sued in the United States for the deaths caused by the political violence during Zimbabwe's parliamentary elections in June. A statement issued in Harare on October 31 by the Department of Information also warned of new Press legislation before the end of the year to stop once and for all the kind of journalism typified by the "Daily News" and "The Standard". According to Sapa, confusion surrounds the court case in New York where four relatives of supporters of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change who were murdered during the political violence, are demanding $400-m for damages from Mugabe. The four are filing their case under US legislation that allows foreign nationals to be sued in the United States for crimes committed in their own country. The law, Alliens Tort Claims Act, was first used in 1789 to bring to court pirates on the high seas. Information Minister Jonathan Moyo said that the reports from the two newspapers were not only false, but criminally defamatory.

DEMONSTRATIONS - "Sowetan " reported on October 31 that the Gauteng region of the Media Workers Association of South Africa was to introduce a motion on November 4 at its national congress calling for sustained pickets against media companies that underpay their black employees. The decision was taken at Mwasa's shop stewards' council meeting in Johannesburg ahead of the Bloemfontein congress. Mwasa Gauteng organiser Oupa Moatshe said that the pickets will serve to further expose companies like Independent Newspapers, Times Media Limited, SABC and Naspers that still discriminate on race in salary, as well as the fact that employees of New Africa Publications Limited still see the benefits of the so-called black economic empowerment concept.

GOVERNMENT AND CORRUPTION - "Sowetan" reported on October 26 that Public Works Minister Stella Siqcau had said that the government will take harsh measures against officials and contractors found guilty of corruption. She was addressing about 300 delegates at a two day anti-corruption summit in Kempton Park. "Those found guilty of fraud will be arrested, ordered to repay the money or have their properties seized. Government is intending to ensure honest and clean administration which will lead to effective governance. The department has played a significant role in the socio economic transformation of South Africa as it is controlling more than 243 000 state -owned properties with an estimated value of R120 billion", she said. Director of Public Prosecutions Bulelani Nqcuka told the delegates that corruption was internationally recognised as a serious threat to social stability and that it had the potential to jeorpadise the security of societies as it threatened socio-economic and political development.

MEDIA COMPLAINTS - On October 27, "Citizen" reported that the Broadcasting Complaints Commission of SA had dismissed complaints that an SABC 3 television programme had given a one-sided view on Islamic Sharia law and offended Muslims. According to the Media Review Network, the two episodes of the documentary "Faces of Sharia" were unbalanced and offensive to Muslims. However, BCCSA chairman Kobus Van Rooyen argued that the programme was balanced and not offensive to Muslim religion.

MEDIA COMPLAINTS - "Mail & Guardian" on November 3 reported that the press ombudsman ruled that it had followed a proper approach towards an apparently offensive article. The ombudsman had rejected a complaint of bias against the "M&G" by the Forum for Debating Aids in South Africa. Labelling the complaint as fatally flawed, ombudsman EH Linnington ruled that the "M&G" had not contravened the press code as alleged by the FDASA. This followed the published article by anonymous author on September 8, headed "All the president's scientists: Diary of a round-earther". It contained extracts from a diary kept by a member of the Presidential Aids Advisory Panel, the body charged with advising President Thabo Mbeki on HIV/Aids. The diary contained seemingly unflattering descriptions of the so-called dissident members of the panel. After the publication of the article, the president of FDASA Elliot Small wrote to "M&G" demanding that the paper make amends for publishing what he called lamentable one-sided reporting. Small alleged that the paper had acted dishonestly by creating the impression that the article was based on facts, while at the same time giving no indication that it was founded on opinions, allegations, rumour and supposition. However, "M&G" contended that the diary was not a news report, and was not presented as such, adding that the press code in so far as it applied to news reports, was not applicable in case of the diary. The ombudsman upheld this view. The ombudsman argued that the public had an obvious interest in an inside view as presented by the diary. Lenington said: "To require the "M&G" to water down that insider's view as Small would like, is in my opinion, to require censorship. In a statement Small said: " Our purpose is not to form an opinion favouring either side, but to learn and reveal the actual science facts. Therefore we cannot support censorship". The FDASA said it would appeal against the ruling.

MEDIA AND GOVERNMENT - "The Citizen" on November 3 reported that speakers at the memorial service of Presidential spokesperson Parks Mankahlana condemned the media for projecting rumours, reducing and belittling the stature of a man who served it and improved its relationship with government. The life of Mankahlana was celebrated at a service with the media taking flack for negative reportage of the circumstances of his death. Former ANCYL president Peter Mokaba said that it did not matter how Mankahlana died but what he died for. He said that Mankahlana had fought for media freedom through his involvement in ANC funded clandestine operations and yet the media chose to remember him by writing obscene information in a bid to attack President Mbeki. Malusi Gigaba, ANCYL president appealed to the media to mimic humanity by being compassionate to Mankahlana's wife and family and to stop hurting them through vile and impious comments. Gigaba said: " There are times where even an insensitive, inhuman and incompassionate media must try to regain its humanity or at least try to ape humans".

JOURNALISTS - "The Star" reported on November 2 that the Independent Newspapers had announced that the"Cape Argus" acting editor and "Weekend Argus" editor, Chris Whitfield, will take over as editor of "Cape Times" next year when John Scott will be retiring. Whitfield will be working with Scott from March next year as editor-designate. Moegsien Williams will be the editor of "Cape Argus" as from January 2001 and Wilmont James, formerly dean of humanities at the University of Cape Town and executive director of Idasa will join him in March as his associate editor.

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