The South African National Editors’ Forum (SANEF) Chairperson Mahlatse Mahlase says they are worried about the threats that the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) continues to make on journalists.
Latest press statement: Sanef Concerned by EFF Leader Julius Malema’s Attack on Journalists – 21 November 2018
Read more: https://t.co/43ztaxpkhT— SANEF (@SAEditorsForum) November 21, 2018
EFF leader Julius Malema and other EFF leaders have made several threats on social media and at various political rallies against some reporters and accused them of not asking difficult questions to Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan.
Yesterday masses of our people reaffirmed their resoluteness against state capture enablers, white monopoly capital and criminal syndicate runners masquerading as journalists …. pic.twitter.com/H40Gwb5aTg
— @effjoburg (@effjoburg) November 21, 2018
Speaking on SAfm’s Sunrise, Mahlase says one of the named journalists was accosted while doing shopping over the weekend.
Earlier last week, Malema named several journalists and also called on EFF supporters to ‘deal with them decisively’.
But over the weekend, a video clip of Malema addressing EFF members surfaced on social media, in the clip he calls on party supporters to not use violence against any journalist but rather to engage with them in a ‘superior logic’.
Malema has identified specific journalists who he accused of protecting Gordhan.
[Watch]: CIC @Julius_S_Malema telling fighters of how Pravin’s SARS rogue unit illegally obtained spy tapes and gave them to Jacob Zuma #PravinMustFall pic.twitter.com/ovmN8BOtRc
— Economic Freedom Fighters (@EFFSouthAfrica) November 20, 2018
But some media houses are not taking this lightly, saying some journalists have been directly threatened.
Sanef has urged political leaders to engage with editors and not journalists whenever they are not happy about coverage of certain events or stories.
Gordhan has since laid charges of crimen injuria, incitement of violence and defamation of character against Malema at the Brooklyn Police Station, in Pretoria on Monday morning.
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