There is no restriction to the entry into and practice of the journalistic profession.
SCORES:
Individual scores:
Average score:

1.5

5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5
5.0

Protection of confidential sources of information is guaranteed by
law.

ANALYSIS:
Article 30 of the Press Law gives journalists the right to keep their sources confidential without fear of reprisals. Despite this provision, judges and attorneys all too often challenge journalists to reveal their sources of information.
In some instances, the request to reveal sources arises out of ignorance. On some occasions
journalists had to provide the text of the law to judges to make them give up their crusade of
forcing media professionals to disclose a source’s name.
SCORES:
Individual scores:
Average score:

1.6

2, 3, 5, 2, 1, 3, 4, 1, 4
2.8

Public information is easily accessible, guaranteed by law, to all
citizens, including journalists.

ANALYSIS:
Public information is neither easily accessible nor is such access guaranteed by law. A case in
point is a piece of legislation obliging all civil servants aspiring to a public position to declare
their assets. However, the same legislation prohibits disclosure of declared assets to both journalists and the public. Recently, a minister disclosed his assets in a weekly newspaper, but
when President Armando Guebuza was asked to declare his a week later, he said the time was
not right for public officials to declare their assets.
SCORES:
Individual scores:
Average score:

1.7

1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1
1.0

Civil society in general and media lobby groups actively advance the
cause of media freedom.

ANALYSIS:
Civil society’s influence is weak compounded by political infiltration of leading civil society
groups. It is frequent for the chairpersons of leading civil society organisations to be associated
with the ruling party, which generates a conflict of interests when lobbying work is necessary.
Furthermore, the number of civil society organisations doing advocacy work as a continuous
activity is decreasing.
So This Is Democracy? 2005

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Media Institute of Southern Africa

Select target paragraph3