Latest news with #Sanef
TimesLIVE
20-05-2025
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
Sanef condemns threats to journalists who work professionally and ethically
The South African National Editors Forum (Sanef) has condemned actions of a Durban businessman who recently threatened a Sunday Times journalist who had called him for comment. Siqu Zungu allegedly threatened Sunday Times senior journalist Isaac Mahlangu when he was called for a comment for an article about him leaving a R12m penthouse owned by a Johannesburg doctor, Blaine Bloy, in which he lived rent-free for about three years before he was recently evicted. Zungu said the journalist should ensure that he gets bodyguards after writing the article about him. The businessman was evicted from a luxury Umhlanga penthouse, which he left with extensive damage, including a broken bathtub, cracked tiles and outstanding rent of more than R1m. When contacted for comment last week, he accused the publication of targeting him and said the journalist should get bodyguards. 'I am asking you to have bodyguards. Do you hear me? I am not joking. It is not a threat ... Ask Bloy who I am, he will tell you. Put out that article, but tell your company to give you bodyguards. 'You've targeted me. I will handle this myself. Maybe Bloy has not told you who I am. Maybe they have not told [you] what kind of life I live ... It's not your job to target a person like this,' he said. Slindile Khanyile, chair of the Sanef media freedom subcommittee said the organisation did not threats to journalists lightly, especially in a country where the work that journalists do and media freedom is protected by the constitution. 'So, we condemn the actions of not only this particular newsmaker, but anyone who makes it difficult for journalists to conduct their work,' she said. She added that Zungu was contacted for comment, which is one of the most important principles of journalism — to give newsmakers the opportunity to tell their side of the story and a fair opportunity to respond to allegations before a story is published. 'When journalists do that, which is something that is required by media ethics as well as the press code, and they then encounter newsmakers who make it difficult for them to do their work, it is unfortunate,' she added. She said journalists should always do the right thing even when reporting on threatening and aggressive people. 'Regardless of how a newsmaker may behave, journalists must always do the right thing by giving people the right to reply and being fair and be balanced in their reporting,' she said. The Sunday Times has reported the matter at the Hillbrow police station.
Local France
07-05-2025
- Automotive
- Local France
Reader question: Are there any free autoroutes in France?
According to a government report published in March 2025, France had 1.1 million kilometres of roads in 2023. But of that 1.1 million, over one million are 'secondary roads', categorised as departmental and communal roads. These might include rural routes, side streets and village roads. Another 21,225 km were main network routes connecting major towns, while 9,474 km were classed as 'other national roads', a figure that includes national roads in the French overseas departments and territories. In total, just 11,752 km were classified as autoroutes in mainland France, and the vast majority (or 9,211 kms) were so-called 'concessionary autoroutes' – aka toll roads that are operated and maintained by private companies, under contracts with the government. READ ALSO Is it worth taking a detour to avoid France's steep autoroute tolls? It doesn't take a degree in mathematics to work out that means there are 2,541 km of 'non concessionary autoroutes' out there that drivers can use for free. These are managed directly by the government, with the cost of maintenance coming out of the taxman's wallet. Advertisement These stretches often run through less-populated regions where it is considered that toll-free urban roads and motorways are vital for economic and social development. It's important to note that services on free sections are often less developed than privately operated ones. READ ALSO Aires: Everything you need to know about motorway services in France These are the main toll-free motorway stretches in France: A75 between Clermont-Ferrand and Béziers; A20 between Vierzon and Montauban; A84 between Rennes and Caen; A35 between Strasbourg and the border with Switzerland; A31 between Toul and the border with Luxembourg (partial); A28 between Abbeville and Alençon (partial). You can also see a map on the Roole media website. Meanwhile, in the northwestern region of Brittany, there are stretches of road that look a lot like autoroutes but – for historic reasons – aren't. They have a lower speed limit (110km/h, compared to 130km/h) and are free for motorists to use. READ ALSO: Driving in France: What is télépéage and how does it work? It is not impossible that some currently tolled autoroute stretches could in the future fall under direct government control and become toll-free, for example – in the style of the A20 between Brive and Montauban, which returned to government ownership in 2006 after being operated by a private company. Advertisement What about 'free flow' tolls? Additionally, a small but increasing number of autoroute stretches are now 'free flow' or Flux Libre . Do not be caught out – these are still toll roads, and you still have to pay to use them. It is simply that the system of payment has changed to match the times. Basically, you go through the toll and then you pay later, either online via the Sanef website or at a tabac . You can also use a pre-paid télépéage badge to pay, which also allow you to skip the queues at other tollbooths. In future, more autoroutes in France are likely to become 'flux libre', while many autoroute concession contracts are due to end between 2031 and 2036, so there are plenty of changes ahead. READ MORE: Péage: How France's new free-flow tollbooths work
The Citizen
06-05-2025
- Politics
- The Citizen
Journalism's battle for survival starts with readers who care
As newsroom lights dim, the future of journalism depends on readers, advertisers, and a return to valuing quality reporting. Saturday was World Press Freedom Day. There wouldn't have been too much of a song and dance about it on the day for the simple reason that there aren't too many Saturday newspapers left. It's a bitter pill for those who laboured for years on a Friday night trying to bloody the noses of the big Sunday papers by ruining their exclusives, while producing an edition that was truly a hybrid of a daily paper and a weekly packed with features and interviews; the news behind the news. Saturday was always a hard sell in the battleground for people's attention; kids to take to school sports events, weekly shopping, funerals and then find time to relax. The battle for the survival of the media isn't just limited to Saturdays though, it's every day of the week now. We can all moan and journalists are among the most vocal, about shrinking operating budgets, declining paginations, unprofitable distribution areas – while raging about the perfidy of influencers and social media, but our media is dying despite the vital role it plays. ALSO READ: Journalism is under attack From the glory days of the struggle against apartheid to the very dark and desperate moments of state capture post-apartheid, it was the media – in all its hues, shapes and individual biases – that helped hold the line and shine on a light on areas that those in power would have far prefer kept in the dark. The Covid pandemic five years ago and the uncontrollable urge of the kleptocrats to filch food parcels and gouge personal protective equipment pricing was another great victory for South African journalists. Without the media, South Africa would be a very different, cruel, country. So how can we help? It's simple really. ALSO READ: Why we are here to serve you and no one else It seems perverse to be writing this to the one constituency that is doing its bit, you the reader by buying this paper, but we need to support our local media. We need to start buying papers again. Businesses need to advertise. We need to subscribe to news sites. We need to phone in to chat shows. ALSO READ: Sanef condemns Israel's ongoing killing of journalists in Gaza [VIDEO] We need to get back to watching TV news and not binge-watching streaming channels. Most of all, if we haven't paid for the subscription, we need to stop using pirate logins. If it's good enough to enjoy, it's good enough to pay for. Great journalism costs money. We can't afford the price of a world without a free press. NOW READ: Abuse of protection orders threatens media freedom in SA
IOL News
04-05-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Sanef and partners launch initiative to protect journalists and human rights defenders
Sanef, Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) and Amnesty International SA launched a new initiative to protect journalists and human rights defenders. Image: - Human rights organisations and the South African National Editors' Forum (Sanef) have launched a new initiative to protect journalists and human rights defenders from any form of threat and intimidation. Sanef, Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) and Amnesty International SA, launched 'Create Project' to safeguard journalists and human rights from rising threats in the form of online abuse, physical intimidation, surveillance and harassment. The project, called Capacitating Resilience, Enhancing Accountability and Transforming the Environment (Create), aims to strengthen the protection of journalists and human rights defenders in Southern Africa. The organisations said journalists and human rights defenders in South Africa and the region are facing rising threats in the form of online abuse, physical intimidation, surveillance and harassment in the face of a global anti-rights movement. This comes as the organisations celebrated World Freedom Day on Saturday. May 3 acts as a reminder to the governments of the need to respect their commitment to press freedom. The organisations said the initiative recognised that attacks on media freedom and civic activism were not isolated and that they are part of a broader pattern aimed at silencing truth and undermining the democratic space. The project is designed to push back against that. In March 2018, former EFF deputy president, Floyd Shivambu, who is now the umKhonto weSizwe (MK) party secretary general, was caught on camera intimidating a multimedia journalist Adrian de Kock outside parliament. In 2020, police in Swaziland raided the home of Zweli Martin Dlami, the editor of the Swaziland News, and arrested him for two articles he published about King Mswati III, lying about the political and economic situation and accusing him of promoting a cultural ceremony where women could be sexually abused. His laptops, cellphones, hard drives and other electronic devices were also seized. In April 2021, SABC Radio news journalist Phanuel Shuma was forced to lay a charge of intimidation with police after brothers Manqoba and Lucky Khoza, who were accused of murder and a prosecutor accused of taking a bribe, wanted him to derail their case, at his workplace in Pretoria. In 2022, human rights defenders Ayanda Ngila and Siyabonga Manqele were murdered and joined the growing list of activists who have been assassinated for their work, like environmental activist Mam'Fikile Ntshangase and whistleblower Babita Deokaran, who were killed for their role in advocating for the rights of marginalised communties and speaking out against corruption. The new initiative aims to build a safe, supportive, and responsive environment where journalists can do their work without fear, and where defenders of human rights can continue to raise their voices without being punished for it. Sanef executive director Reggy Moalusi said, 'This is a key training initiative, coming at the right time when journalists across southern Africa are increasingly being harassed and intimidated. We seek to see a better environment where journalists are better treated and are allowed to do their work without any fear of being hunted down by those who simply hate the work they do, and they are afraid of being exposed for all the wrongdoing.' At the core of the project is the development of a system where journalists can report threats and harassment safely and confidentially. These reports will not only help secure emergency support for those in immediate danger but will also contribute to a growing body of evidence that can be used to hold perpetrators accountable and influence legal and policy reforms. Amnesty International SA executive director Shenilla Mohamed said, 'This is an important project which underscores the work Amnesty International South Africa, along with other organisations, has been doing on human rights defenders. Journalists, like all human rights defenders, need to be protected. Attacks on journalists ultimately restrict the right to freedom of expression in the country and have the potential to limit the right of the public to access accurate information in the public interest. A vibrant and free press is a key building block of any society.' By collecting and analysing data on threats and trends, the CREATE project will help shape more informed responses from policymakers, media organizations, and human rights institutions. The aim is to close the gaps that currently allow perpetrators of harassment and violence to act without consequence. The organisations added that to protect press freedom, the broader environment must be safe for all defenders of rights and democracy. The project strengthens referral networks and access to information so that more defenders, not just those in major cities or established media, can get help when they need it most.
