Media
‘Mugabe and the White African’ wins award for World Feature at SILVERDOCS
Sokwanele Article: June 24th, 2009
From the SILVERDOCS website:
This year’s SILVERDOCS Sterling Award for a World Feature goes to MUGABE AND THE WHITE AFRICAN directed by Lucy Bailey and Andrew Thompson, which explores, through the lens of a 74-year-old white farmer, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s deeply controversial land seizure program, which intended to re-distribute white-owned farmland. The director will receive $10,000 cash.
GPA demands a genuine commitment towards achieving freedom of expression in Zimbabwe
Sokwanele Article: May 19th, 2009Focusing on Clauses 19.1(d) and (e)
Sokwanele's ZIG Watch project has been documenting violations of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) signed between Zimbabwe's three main political parties. Through this article, Sokwanele aims to familiarise our readership with sub-clauses 19.1(d) and (e). These are two of five sub-clauses falling under Article XIX of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) signed on 15 September 2008. Article XIX sets out to recognise the importance of the right to freedom of expression and the role of the media in a multi-party democracy.
Article XIX, Clause 19.1 (d) that steps be taken to ensure that the public media provides balanced and fair coverage to all political parties for their legitimate political activities [and] Clause (e) that the public and private media shall refrain from using abusive language that may incite hostility, political intolerance and ethnic hatred or that unfairly undermines political parties and other organisations. To this end, the inclusive government shall ensure that appropriate measures are taken to achieve this objective.
Accountability and Responsibility
Under the GPA, the Ministry of Media, Information and Publicity has been allocated to Zanu PF. The new Minister of Information is Webster Shamu who has been described as "instrumental in helping to turn the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation into a centre of hate speech and blatant propaganda."
Youth Day: Remembering Soweto 1976, and thinking of Zimbabwe's youth in 2007
Sokwanele Article: June 15th, 2007Tomorrow is Youth Day in South Africa, a day that recalls forever the determination and bravery of the students who took it upon themselves to confront the apartheid government. On the 16th of June 1976, thousands of black students walked from their schools to Orlando Stadium for a rally to protest against having to study in Afrikaans at school (for many a second or third language). What happened on 16 June will never be forgotten.
