Parliament's secretary claims the institution knew nothing of the signal jamming during President Jacob Zuma’s address last week, but media, NGOs and political parties have come out guns blazing.
The signal jamming, which prevented anyone from communicating with the world outside of parliament ahead of the State of the Nation Address (Sona) may well have been illegal and has been described variously as a criminal attack on democracy and the constitution, and a despicable, shocking and unprecedented assault on freedoms and rights.
The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) warned that the use of such jamming devices by any entity other than national security cluster departments was illegal. Even these departments were required to have the support of relevant security legislation to deploy the use of such devices.
South Africa’s media houses and the SA National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) have warned they will resort to court action to ensure it never happens again.
Sanef chairman Mpumelelo Mkhabela warned after a council meeting in Cape Town last week that it intended going one step further and also ask the courts to compel parliament to allow media to install their own cameras in the legislature.
Sanef and the Press Gallery Association (PGA) tried in vain in the weeks leading up to the Sona to get an assurance that the broadcasting of events in the national assembly would not be stopped when there was a commotion in the house.
This was after parliament presented its policy on filming and broadcasting which stated that the parliamentary broadcast feed would focus only on Speaker Baleka Mbete during incidents of disorder or unparliamentary behaviour instead of showing the activity on the floor and public galleries of the house.
True to form, the feed stayed focused on Mbete throughout the hullabaloo between security personnel and EFF MPs as well as the walkout by the DA.
The Right2Know Campaign has also condemned the jamming of internet and cellphone signals in parliament describing it and the use of police force to evict MPs as an attack on democracy.
“It appears increasingly that the state can’t or won’t govern by consent and is prepared to govern by increasingly authoritarian means,” said the R2K in a statement.
The DA has indicated it would give written notice asking the house to refer both Mbete and National Council of Province’s chair Thandi Modise for investigation, to be sanctioned and hopefully removal from office for the part they had played in the Sona debacle.
The Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) based at Rhodes University has also expressed its horror at the signal jamming, saying it was a violation of the Constitution and should result in disciplinary action and the resignation of political bosses responsible for the violations.
Parliament secretary Gengezi Mgidlana reiterated that there would be an investigation into the “regrettable” signal jamming.
And while Icasa has warned that only the security cluster departments could – under very limited circumstances – implement signal jamming, their political boss, Defence Minister Noziviwe Mapisa-Nqakula told Eyewitness News she knew nothing of it.
Outrage over signal jamming
The signal jamming, which prevented anyone from communicating with the world outside of parliament ahead of the State of the Nation Address (Sona) may well have been illegal and has been described variously as a criminal attack on democracy and the constitution, and a despicable, shocking and unprecedented assault on freedoms and rights.
The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) warned that the use of such jamming devices by any entity other than national security cluster departments was illegal. Even these departments were required to have the support of relevant security legislation to deploy the use of such devices.
South Africa’s media houses and the SA National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) have warned they will resort to court action to ensure it never happens again.
Sanef chairman Mpumelelo Mkhabela warned after a council meeting in Cape Town last week that it intended going one step further and also ask the courts to compel parliament to allow media to install their own cameras in the legislature.
Sanef and the Press Gallery Association (PGA) tried in vain in the weeks leading up to the Sona to get an assurance that the broadcasting of events in the national assembly would not be stopped when there was a commotion in the house.
This was after parliament presented its policy on filming and broadcasting which stated that the parliamentary broadcast feed would focus only on Speaker Baleka Mbete during incidents of disorder or unparliamentary behaviour instead of showing the activity on the floor and public galleries of the house.
True to form, the feed stayed focused on Mbete throughout the hullabaloo between security personnel and EFF MPs as well as the walkout by the DA.
The Right2Know Campaign has also condemned the jamming of internet and cellphone signals in parliament describing it and the use of police force to evict MPs as an attack on democracy.
“It appears increasingly that the state can’t or won’t govern by consent and is prepared to govern by increasingly authoritarian means,” said the R2K in a statement.
The DA has indicated it would give written notice asking the house to refer both Mbete and National Council of Province’s chair Thandi Modise for investigation, to be sanctioned and hopefully removal from office for the part they had played in the Sona debacle.
The Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) based at Rhodes University has also expressed its horror at the signal jamming, saying it was a violation of the Constitution and should result in disciplinary action and the resignation of political bosses responsible for the violations.
Parliament secretary Gengezi Mgidlana reiterated that there would be an investigation into the “regrettable” signal jamming.
And while Icasa has warned that only the security cluster departments could – under very limited circumstances – implement signal jamming, their political boss, Defence Minister Noziviwe Mapisa-Nqakula told Eyewitness News she knew nothing of it.
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