The South African National Editors’ Forum (SANEF) says it is disappointed with the dismissal of its application to interdict the EFF from alleged harassment, intimidation and attacks on some journalists. The organisation approached the Equality Court sitting in the High Court in Pretoria on behalf of five journalists who accused the EFF, its leader Julius Malema, and purported supporters of creating a hostile working environment for them.
BREAKING: EFF wins case against SANEF, Ranjeni Munusamy, Pauli Van Wyk, Adrian Bassonia, Max Du Preez and Bary Bateman
They wanted the court to declare our call on them to be regarded as enemies of the revolution & defenders of Ramaphosa as hate speech.#StratCom– 0
EFF- 1 pic.twitter.com/UIYSuxdd3V— Mbuyiseni Ndlozi (@MbuyiseniNdlozi) October 24, 2019
The South African National Editors’ Forum has noted that it has lost its case against the EFF.
SANEF respects the court’s ruling and we are awaiting the full judgment.— SANEF (@SAEditorsForum) October 24, 2019
The court found that Malema’s speech did not constitute hate speech, and found neither legal nor factual basis to hold Malema liable for breaching the Equality Act.
SANEF’s Judy Sandison says they will continue to engage with the EFF on the matter.
“We do feel it is an important issue for the public and the media. And the judge did say that it is important for all political parties such as the EFF and everyone else to try positively making sure that journalists can work fully, independently and safe . We are still hopeful that we can meet with members of the EFF, with the leadership, and we are going to keep asking for that because we feel it’s very important.”
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