South Africa’s Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), led by Julius Malema has maintained that it will not welcome some members of the media to cover the Party’s Second Annual People’s Assembly which is underway at Nasrec, South of Johannesburg.
IOL reports that the party denied journalists from Daily Maverick, Scorpio, amaBhungane, Rapport and Caxton publications access to the conference thereby attracting public outcry.
EFF national chairperson Dali Mpofu told eNCA in an interview this Saturday that some publications will remain banned from covering the party’s events because they are partisan. Mpofu added:
One of the lessons from this is that constitutional rights are not things that are there. Constitutional rights go with obligations…
The conditional right of the media include not taking partisan sides, not vilifying selectively, not targeting certain people …
Meanwhile, Sanef acting media freedom chairperson Mary Papayya said the ban on certain publications was the breach of the constitution which was very clear about the right to media freedom and freedom of expression.
She observed that the event was not a private function.
More: IOL