SANEF astounded by SABC

SANEF welcomed the weekend ruling by Johannesburg High Court Judge Zukiswa Tshiqi who dismissed the SABC's application to have the Sisulu/Marcus report into blacklisting of commentators expunged from the Mail and Guardian website.

The commissioners recommended that the report was manifestly in the public interest and should be made available to the entire public while the judge said it "was crucial that the commissioners had made that recommendation''.

The judge added that the recommendation could not be underemphasised and that it was overriding in relation to the conduct of the public broadcaster in the public interest. SANEF has therefore called upon the SABC to release the report in full.

Sanef has also pointed out that the major finding of the commission that several commentators were blacklisted for "impermissible reasons'' reflect unacceptable journalistic practice, all the more objectionable because their exclusion was by the public broadcaster which has a duty to encourage the widest range of comment on current affairs.