We must defend freedom of media - President Zuma

“We seek a vibrant and dynamic partnership that is enriched by democratic debate that values diverse views and accommodates dissent,” Zuma (67) said at the event. “Therefore, we need to make real the fundamental right of all South Africans to freely express themselves, to protest, to organise and to practice their faith.

“We must defend the freedom of the media, as we seek to promote within it a greater diversity of voices and perspectives.”

This statement is likely to please analysts and independent journalists who feared that freedom of the media - already under heavy pressure from the ANC's new leadership - will totally disappear under the Zuma presidency.

The person most likely to be pleased by this statement is the award-winning cartoonist Jonathan ‘Zapiro' Shapiro, who is being sued by a huge amount for drawing a cartoon depicting Zuma preparing to rape the justice system.

"Intimidate journalists"

Zapiro told Al-Jazeera TV recently: “I am not scared of lawsuits but I am scared of the way he is using, among others, lawsuits to intimidate journalists.

“I have been threatened by people saying that they will shoot and kill me if I continue to do those things. I am afraid there is a sense of censorship that is creeping into this country.”

Other alarming factors believed to place SA press freedom on the knife-edge include the ANC's support of a media appeals tribunal to ‘punish' the media for publishing untruths', the ejection of journalists from courts of law to prevent any coverage of trial proceedings, the arrest of journalists and photographers at crime scenes, and the SABC's blacklisting of government critics.

However, it remains to be seen whether Zuma will drop his libel actions against the media, thus extending an olive branch to journalists who he claims mercilessly ‘persecuted' him for eight miserable years when he was grappling with the demons of the arms deal investigation.

Columnist William Saunderson wrote in The Citizen on Saturday: “With the media, Zuma must abandon the ANC goal of state media tribunal to curb what it views as excesses.

“Such a body has no place in a democracy and, besides, it won't work. Similarly, Zuma should withdraw the dozen or so libel actions he has pending against various newspapers and journalists.”

Only time will tell.