International press groups petition South Africa over controversial bill

The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) and the World Editors Forum (WEF) have called on the South African government to amend or withdraw plans for new legislation that would restrict press freedom in the country.

In a letter to President Jacob Zuma, the organisations, which represent news groups and journalists in more than 120 countries, criticise the proposed Protection of Information Bill. The groups claim that the bill, which is currently before parliament, would protect the government from press scrutiny.

"Under the bill, officials would be empowered to classify any public or commercial data as confidential on vaguely defined 'national interest' grounds without having to give any explanation. Such powers could be used to outlaw coverage of such issues as public law enforcement and judicial matters, with political appointees having the final say over which information should be classified," says the letter, which is signed by Gavin O'Reilly, president of WAN-IFRA, and Xavier Vidal-Folch, president of WEF.

"One of the serious deficiencies in the legislation is that there is no provision for a 'public interest' defence by journalists and others to support the disclosure of classified information. Anyone found guilty of unauthorised disclosure of official or classified information could face heavy penalties."

Changes are also being proposed to the regulatory system in South Africa with the introduction of a Media Appeals Tribunal for handling complaints against of the press. But the existing self-regulatory system is effective and acts with a neutrality that would not be maintained by the creation of a new agency by the government, say WAN-IFRA and WEF.

"We respectfully call on you to ensure that the Protection of Information Bill and the Media Appeals Tribunals proposal are either amended in line with constitutional safeguards for freedom of the press or withdrawn altogether. We ask that you ensure that any future media reform in South Africa fully respects international standards of press freedom," say the groups.

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