Right2Know (R2K) said the SANDF presence will not only make SABC journalists feel intimidated, but also members of the public who work as sources for the journalists.
However, R2K national organiser Lazola Kati said that in an ideal democratic society the SABC, a public broadcaster, should be a beacon of media freedom, and the army presence was likely to curtail it.
“We do believe that the presence of the army within and outside the SABC will create an environment of intimidation,” Kati told Independent Media. Some SABC staff members said the presence of the army within the broadcaster had left workers divided. Some welcomed the army’s presence as a way of ensuring that, in the event of an uprising, the SABC should not be used to spread propaganda.
“Of course, there are those who feel it was wrong for the army to be seen inside the newsroom if they claim that their mandate was to protect the building,” one SABC staffer said.
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