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SOUTHERN AFRICA PRESS FREEDOM REPORT 2019-2020

SECTION 1: OVERVIEW
AND ASSESSMENT
introduction

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VIBRANT and critical media is the
hallmark of any democratic society. To
achieve its fundamental watchdog role
of holding those in power accountable,
providing reliable information to the
public and facilitating debate among citizens on
issues of public importance, including democratic
processes, the state must uphold and guarantee
freedom of expression and access to information
rights which enable journalists to do their
work.
However, the landscape and operational
environment for the media in Southern Africa has
been characterised by upheavals, accentuated
by the Covid-19 pandemic and the advent of the
digital age, which have threatened the viability
and sustainability of the media.
Many of the countries still possess obsolete legal
and policy frameworks that unnecessarily hinder
the work of journalists and media practitioners,
despite having constitutional guarantees on
freedom of expression, media freedom and
access to information.
This has further been punctuated by physical
and verbal attacks, harassment and assault of
journalists and in some cases raiding of media
houses.

REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL
STANDARDS
In November 2019, the African Commission
on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African
Commission) adopted the Declaration of
Principles of Freedom of Expression and Access to
Information in Africa (1) to safeguard the rights to
freedom of expression and access to information
as guaranteed under Article 9 of the African
Charter. These Principles repealed the 2002
Declaration on freedom of expression which had
become inadequate in so far as expounding on
digital rights and the right to access information.
The Declaration expansively sets out and
promotes principles on freedom of expression,
access to information and internet rights in Africa,
adopting international standards under Article 19
of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights
and article 19 of the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which provide
for the right to freedom of expression and access

to information, including the parameters of
restriction. In particular, Article 19 of the ICCPR
provides for everyone’s right to freedom of
opinion and the right to freedom of expression;
and this right shall include freedom to seek,
receive and impart information and ideas of all
kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in
writing or in print, in the form of art or through
any other media of his choice (2). The article
further introduces limitations under which these

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