South Africa’s hypocritical free press

ONE cannot help being a little skeptical of the outpouring of sympathy for Charlie Hebdo by local advocates of a free press.

It is not that many of these self-proclaimed spokespersons accomplish a skillful dance that involves distancing oneself from the content of the cartoons, at the same time as blowing the horn of liberal democratic values, or that many conservatives simply express solidarity at the same time that they uphold limits on expression and exalt the same values which drove the killers.

No, it is because persons such as Ferial Hafajee and Max du Preez don’t actually give a fig about press freedom.

Readers will remember Hafajee, the editor of a Media24 title City Press, as the same person who destroyed a posting on this blog and then attempted to hijack its content. The fate of my own book review of A Secret Burden must rankle anyone opposed to censorship.

Then there is Max du Preez, the former editor of Vrye Weekblad and the man who made his mark as the star SABC reporter at the Truth Commission, failing to uphold the same report trashed by a 2010 labour court decision, memorialising and reiterating the apartheid heresy.

By the looks of things, most of these fools, including the one-time editor of the Rand Daily Mail, Alister Sparks, are going to end up working for Naspers, an outlet which is quickly becoming nothing more than sheltered employment for whites.

Having received correspondence from the Public Protector referring my complaint against Judge Cheat to the Office of the Chief Justice, and now having received correspondence from the  Judicial Service Commission referring the matter to the Judicial Conduct Committee, one can only hope the press wake up to what is happening in public view and before their very eyes.

If you haven’t got the case number with regard to the complaint of corruption and forgery of documents, here it is again: CAS 1566/10/2014

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