It took less than five minutes for a settlement to be read out on Monday‚ ending an acrimonious battle that spanned more than two years over the controversial dismissal of former Cape Times newspaper editor Alide Dasnois.
“I am feeling very happy‚” said Dasnois outside the Labour Court in Cape Town. She hailed the settlement reached with her former employers Independent Newspapers as a victory for journalists.
The row began with the firing of Dasnois in the immediate aftermath of Nelson Mandela’s death on December 6‚ 2013 by Independent chair Iqbal Surve.
She took steps to sue Independent Newspapers for unfair dismissal and breach of contract‚ and was expected to argue when the hearing started on Monday that the company had intended to punish her for publishing material contrary to the interests of its owners‚ infringing her right to freedom of expression.
She was initially seeking a total of 38 months’ salary in damages‚ about R3.3-million‚ plus costs. But the parties issued a joint statement instead‚ “settling the litigation and all outstanding matters between them”.
Speaking after the settlement was read out by Judge Hilary Rabkin-Naicker‚ Dasnois said: “We signed a settlement agreement today in which there are major concessions from Independent Newspaper which I think are a victory for journalists. They have withdrawn their allegations of racism against me.
“They have accepted that the way the Cape Times dealt with the death of former President Nelson Mandela‚ although they differ with the decisions that I took. But they have accepted that the decisions I took were with my prerogative as editor and I am happy about that. I think that underlines the editorial independence that we were fighting for in court.”
According to the Open Democracy Advice Centre‚ which supported Dasnois’ case‚ a later disciplinary hearing found her guilty of “dereliction of duty and/or a gross lack of judgement” in failing to “lead editorially” with Mandela’s death in the second edition of the Cape Times.
“However‚ the Cape Times second edition did indeed lead with the death of Madiba. The newspaper produced a special four-page edition with a new front page‚ two pages of news and a leader‚ a timeline and tributes‚” the centre said on its website.
Both parties‚ in the settlement‚ agreed that her decision to run a special wraparound edition was not intended to show disrespect for Mandela or his legacy or to embarrass her bosses.
They agreed that her conduct was not motivated by racism. Independent Newspapers retracted all allegations of racism made against her during proceedings that preceded the termination of her employment.
Speculation was rife after she was removed as editor that the decision was related to her decision to publish an article that was critical of a company in the Sekunjalo stable. Surve founded Sekunjalo.
The article was based on a report by the public protector which found that one of the Sekunjalo companies‚ Sekunjalo Marine Services Consortium‚ had been improperly awarded a tender by the Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fishing.
Dasnois had prepared an affidavit for the hearing‚ which said that discussions began in mid-November about replacing her with Gasant Abarder‚ a former editor of the Cape Argus‚ then working for radio station CapeTalk.
On November 19‚ Abarder told Independent’s executive editor in the Western Cape‚ Chris Whitfield‚ that Surve had offered him the job‚ according to the papers.
On December 6‚ Dasnois was asked to attend a meeting with Surve and other senior Independent managers at the Vineyard Hotel in Cape Town.
Prior to her arrival‚ according to the affidavit‚ he allegedly held a copy of the Cape Times (without the wraparound) and was “pointing his finger at the story about…the public protector’s report.
“He described that story as well as the editorial as an ‘up yours’ to himself. He was visibly angry.
“Surve told (her) that in his view she was too ideologically left wing‚ not business-friendly enough and therefore not suitable for the Cape Times‚” said the affidavit.
“He said that he felt it would be more appropriate for her to work for a labour bulletin — not yet in existence but to be created… this should happen with immediate effect.”
Surve issued a statement on December 9‚ 2013‚ stating that the newspaper had lost sales and that Dasnois had been removed due to underperformance.
He said suggestions that she had been removed because of the negative front page article was part of a “concerted public campaign of lies and distortions...without a shred of proof offered in evidence — that Alide Dasnois’ replacement was the result of the story published as the lead in the paper … regarding adverse findings by the public protector against the government minister in the award of a tender to one of the companies in the Sekunjalo Group”.
Activist group Right2Know held a picket outside the Labour Court.
Axed Cape Times editor says settlement a ‘victory for journalists’
“I am feeling very happy‚” said Dasnois outside the Labour Court in Cape Town. She hailed the settlement reached with her former employers Independent Newspapers as a victory for journalists.
The row began with the firing of Dasnois in the immediate aftermath of Nelson Mandela’s death on December 6‚ 2013 by Independent chair Iqbal Surve.
She took steps to sue Independent Newspapers for unfair dismissal and breach of contract‚ and was expected to argue when the hearing started on Monday that the company had intended to punish her for publishing material contrary to the interests of its owners‚ infringing her right to freedom of expression.
She was initially seeking a total of 38 months’ salary in damages‚ about R3.3-million‚ plus costs. But the parties issued a joint statement instead‚ “settling the litigation and all outstanding matters between them”.
Speaking after the settlement was read out by Judge Hilary Rabkin-Naicker‚ Dasnois said: “We signed a settlement agreement today in which there are major concessions from Independent Newspaper which I think are a victory for journalists. They have withdrawn their allegations of racism against me.
“They have accepted that the way the Cape Times dealt with the death of former President Nelson Mandela‚ although they differ with the decisions that I took. But they have accepted that the decisions I took were with my prerogative as editor and I am happy about that. I think that underlines the editorial independence that we were fighting for in court.”
According to the Open Democracy Advice Centre‚ which supported Dasnois’ case‚ a later disciplinary hearing found her guilty of “dereliction of duty and/or a gross lack of judgement” in failing to “lead editorially” with Mandela’s death in the second edition of the Cape Times.
“However‚ the Cape Times second edition did indeed lead with the death of Madiba. The newspaper produced a special four-page edition with a new front page‚ two pages of news and a leader‚ a timeline and tributes‚” the centre said on its website.
Both parties‚ in the settlement‚ agreed that her decision to run a special wraparound edition was not intended to show disrespect for Mandela or his legacy or to embarrass her bosses.
They agreed that her conduct was not motivated by racism. Independent Newspapers retracted all allegations of racism made against her during proceedings that preceded the termination of her employment.
Speculation was rife after she was removed as editor that the decision was related to her decision to publish an article that was critical of a company in the Sekunjalo stable. Surve founded Sekunjalo.
The article was based on a report by the public protector which found that one of the Sekunjalo companies‚ Sekunjalo Marine Services Consortium‚ had been improperly awarded a tender by the Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fishing.
Dasnois had prepared an affidavit for the hearing‚ which said that discussions began in mid-November about replacing her with Gasant Abarder‚ a former editor of the Cape Argus‚ then working for radio station CapeTalk.
On November 19‚ Abarder told Independent’s executive editor in the Western Cape‚ Chris Whitfield‚ that Surve had offered him the job‚ according to the papers.
On December 6‚ Dasnois was asked to attend a meeting with Surve and other senior Independent managers at the Vineyard Hotel in Cape Town.
Prior to her arrival‚ according to the affidavit‚ he allegedly held a copy of the Cape Times (without the wraparound) and was “pointing his finger at the story about…the public protector’s report.
“He described that story as well as the editorial as an ‘up yours’ to himself. He was visibly angry.
“Surve told (her) that in his view she was too ideologically left wing‚ not business-friendly enough and therefore not suitable for the Cape Times‚” said the affidavit.
“He said that he felt it would be more appropriate for her to work for a labour bulletin — not yet in existence but to be created… this should happen with immediate effect.”
Surve issued a statement on December 9‚ 2013‚ stating that the newspaper had lost sales and that Dasnois had been removed due to underperformance.
He said suggestions that she had been removed because of the negative front page article was part of a “concerted public campaign of lies and distortions...without a shred of proof offered in evidence — that Alide Dasnois’ replacement was the result of the story published as the lead in the paper … regarding adverse findings by the public protector against the government minister in the award of a tender to one of the companies in the Sekunjalo Group”.
Activist group Right2Know held a picket outside the Labour Court.
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