The National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) is to seek a meeting with new Police Minister Bheki Cele about the raid on investigative journalist, Jacques Pauw’s home.
This after Hawks officers came to Pauw’s home at Riebeek Kasteel in the Western Cape Swartland this week, searching for classified documents.
Pauw’s recent book ‘The President’s Keepers’ contained a number of allegations against State Security Agency head Arthur Fraser as well as former president Jacob Zuma.
Sanef’s Sam Mkhokheli describes the Hawks’ raid as nothing less than a threat to media freedom.
“It’s shocking really the kind of things we see in a democracy where the state gets abused to achieve political end. What we suspect is a few personalities have been threatened by Jaqcues Pauw and now they are abusing the system. And it does worry us because of the potential consequences for the media in dealing vigilant, independent and courageous media getting the state to crack down the truth. We see it as harassment and intimidation.”
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