Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom

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The real reasons for <strong>the</strong> animosity are lurking under <strong>the</strong> surface, unspoken, as <strong>the</strong> more “reasonable” arguments for a “statutory Media Appeals Tribunal” in South Africa are marshalled. Unfortunately <strong>the</strong>se arguments find fertile ground among sections of <strong>the</strong> public that remember only <strong>the</strong> bad journalism. In 2010 <strong>the</strong> Press Ombudsman’s office received 213 complaints. One complaint is one too many, but <strong>the</strong> 213 measured against <strong>the</strong> millions of words that are churned out in newsrooms in South Africa every day is miniscule. Unfortunately it is <strong>the</strong> 213 that will be remembered. The only defence for <strong>the</strong> media is a rigorous adherence to good journalistic ethics: stories that are “which includes … freedom of <strong>the</strong> press and o<strong>the</strong>r media in <strong>the</strong> Constitution and we believed we were among <strong>the</strong> pacesetters in upholding democracy.” truthful, accurate, fair, in context and balanced. Each time <strong>the</strong>y sit down to write, journalists need to remember why <strong>the</strong>y are telling <strong>the</strong> story. The South African Press Code spells it out: “The primary purpose of ga<strong>the</strong>ring and distributing news and opinion is to serve society by informing citizens and enabling <strong>the</strong>m to make informed judgments on <strong>the</strong> issues of <strong>the</strong> time.” It has to be credible storytelling, in <strong>the</strong> public interest. The <strong>Windhoek</strong> project of developing and promoting non-governmental regulations and codes of ethics in each country “in order to defend more effectively <strong>the</strong> profession and ensure its credibility” has to be resuscitated in spite of attempts by <strong>the</strong> politicians in South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and elsewhere on our continent to turn <strong>the</strong> media into <strong>the</strong>ir lapdogs through statutory councils. We have to do it for <strong>the</strong> sake of democracy and true liberation on our continent. Journalists and editors need to get back to <strong>the</strong>ir ethical codes and live <strong>the</strong>m. Possibilities abound: refresher courses on ethics, brown-bag lunches to discuss ethics, talks in newsrooms by authorities on ethics. They need to be actioned if we want <strong>the</strong> legacy of <strong>Windhoek</strong> to be entrenched in our media freedom landscape. Section 1: Freedom Media in Africa - 2011 | 73
Self-regulation isn’t perfect, but statutory regulation is much worse By Fred M’membe Fred M’membe is editor in chief of The Post, Zambia’s leading independent daily, and a veteran crusader for press freedom. He has incurred <strong>the</strong> persecution of numerous Zambian governments for his outspoken and courageous journalism. 74 | Media in Africa - 2011 Self-regulation isn’t perfect, but statutory regulation is much worse. Few would argue that news media on our continent always carry out <strong>the</strong>ir functions responsibly. They can be sensational, superficial, intrusive, inaccurate and inflammatory. But as Nelson Mandela once aptly put it, “… none of our irritations with <strong>the</strong> perceived inadequacies of <strong>the</strong> media should ever allow us to suggest even faintly that <strong>the</strong> independence of <strong>the</strong> press could be compromised or coerced.” The freedom of <strong>the</strong> press, and of its inalienable right to be <strong>the</strong> critic and mirror of our societies, is under threat on our continent. In saying this, I am not in any way implying that our people, including our politicians, should not take issue with <strong>the</strong> deficiencies of <strong>the</strong> media. It is part of <strong>the</strong> democratic process that <strong>the</strong>y take vigorous issue with <strong>the</strong> media – but without in any way implying a right to infringe on <strong>the</strong> freedom of <strong>the</strong> press. I have never understood <strong>the</strong> rationale of those who seem to be saying that <strong>the</strong> press will enjoy full rights when it is worthy of <strong>the</strong>m; i.e. when it is more “responsible”. Fundamental rights do not have to be earned through good or acceptable conduct. Press freedom would be a farce if it meant merely <strong>the</strong> freedom to report pleasant things. I hold that <strong>the</strong> greatest right in <strong>the</strong> world is <strong>the</strong> right to be wrong and that, in <strong>the</strong> exercise <strong>the</strong>reof, people have an inviolable right to express <strong>the</strong>ir unbridled thoughts on all topics and personalities, being liable only for <strong>the</strong> abuse of that right. There have been many complaints from our politicians about <strong>the</strong> conduct of our press and many have advocated for statutory regulation of <strong>the</strong> media. They argue that as one of <strong>the</strong> basic attributes of democratic sovereignty, <strong>the</strong> media should be regulated by democratically elected people in parliament and <strong>the</strong> government in general. They also argue that it is only through statutory regulation that severe-enough sanctions can be imposed to guarantee strict observance of a given set of rules. Such sanctions, particularly those provided by criminal law, can <strong>the</strong>n be implemented by state authorities like <strong>the</strong> police and public prosecutors. But <strong>the</strong>re is great opposition to this approach by o<strong>the</strong>r stakeholders who feel statutory regulation is not <strong>the</strong> best way of addressing deficiencies in <strong>the</strong> media. These groups advocate for self-regulation, under which those involved in <strong>the</strong> media draw up <strong>the</strong>ir own regulations in order to achieve <strong>the</strong>ir objectives and take full responsibility for monitoring compliance with <strong>the</strong>m. And because <strong>the</strong> state is not involved in this form of regulation, statutory sanctions cannot be imposed.
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MEDIA IN AFRICA Twenty</str
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This work is licensed under <strong
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A small publisher gets technology t
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Foreword By Janis Karklins Janis Ka
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This is MISA By Kaitira Kandjii Kai
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overview overvie Overview
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What then have bee
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and the results we
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critical to journalism as well as t
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matters. Some people could, for ins
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two publications for six months on
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Page 28 and 29: Journalists at work, interviewing S
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Page 36 and 37: Studies; African Communication Rese
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Page 42 and 43: watchdogs. A profile of Ugandan jou
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Page 46 and 47: independent Namibia, set th
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Page 50 and 51: media that was independent of gover
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INDEPENDEN INDEPENDENCE
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elow US$ 5-million. This was <stron
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Challenges of organising journalist
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The importance of editorial indepen
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What it’s like in the</st
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The Zambian National Broadcasting C
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Post Windhoek, Mal
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What is one of the
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Journalist, African or both? And wh
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When the Media Fou
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of other forms of
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siege, the MFWA wo
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The path leading the</stron
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position, authorities keep on tryin
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state explicitly that freedom of ex
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ing gender. This might help explain
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itself was considering the<
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New questions for African public se
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The globe gets it: Access to Inform
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sion and access to information in A
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e supplied during the</stro
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witness sessions and attend public
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them to send regul
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assumption that the</strong
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does not cost extra to broadcast in
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the flow of inform
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200 radio stations, 23 TV channels,
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This was how stories such as <stron
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individual countries and former col
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the obstacles our
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Journalism to give Africans health
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How African media, and journalism s
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windho Windhoek <s
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establishment of news media outlets
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Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom

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