Moin zusammen,
in Südafrika ist eine weitere bedenkliche Entwicklung im Gange, nämlich der Versuch, vor der WM die kritische Berichterstattung über die unsägliche Gewaltkriminalität im Lande zu ersticken.
An embargo has been placed on police stations providing media with crime reports. This was reportedly done to divert attention from crime when foreign visitors consider attending the FIFA World Cup next year.
Quelle
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Bedenklicher noch erscheint mir die Festnahme mehrerer rechter Blogger, der Beschlagnahme ihrer Rechner und der späteren Freilassung ohne jegliche Anklagerhebung. Hier versucht die Regierung höchstwahrscheinlich, Angst zu erzeugen. Ab 1999 ging es in Zimbabwe ähnlich los: Zunächst der Versuch die freie Berichterstattung durch Gesetze einzuschränken, was jedoch erst gelang, nachdem die unabhängigen Richter aus dem Amt genötigt worden waren. Nachdem dies erledigt war, wurde die unabhängige Presse durch Sprengung ihrer Produktionsmittel ausgeschaltet. Das Web war und ist für die Meinungsbildung der Zimbabwer im Lande nicht nutzbar.
Anders sieht es in Südafrika aus. Hier hat das Web sowohl im Lande selbst als auch für die Information der übrigen Welt durchaus Relevanz. Dadurch und durch die zunehmende Aufmerksamkeit der Welt im Vorfeld der WM sind diese Blogs wegen ihrer ungeschminkten Feststellungen, insbesondere hinsichtlich der unvorstellbaren Grausamkeit, mit der Weiße häufig zu Tode gefoltert werden, wenn es nur um eine Stereoanlage und ein Auto geht, eine Gefahr für die südafrikanische Regierung.
Die Zugriffszahlen der diversen Blogs steigen, und sie beginnen Relevanz über ihren rechten bis extrem rechten Stammleserkreis hinaus zu gewinnen. Ich sehe die Vorgänge als den Versuch, die Büchse der Pandora wieder zu schließen.
South African government cracks down on critical bloggers
In the last two days people from a few websites and blogs that are critical of the ANC led government has been arrested, three of which we know have been released with no charges made against them.
It is clear that the South African government is cracking down on bloggers that are critical of the way they run the country and they want to censor the information these bloggers and websites give out.
One of these are Zasucks where the blogger Uhuru Guru was arrested, spent the night in jail and was released with no charges. No word if he got his computer equipment back that was confiscated.
At another site Boerevryheid.co.za another two bloggers got arrested, their equipment taken and was later released without charges, also no word if they got their equipment back. A lot of people claim that this is because South Africa wants the bad publicity to stop before the 2010 soccer world cup but instead of dealing with the crime directly they now try to scare these bloggers as some would say into shock.
Another blogger of Boer Freedom has been arrested, also this time no charges after spending some time in jail. Some claim this is because they blog about the "boer genocide" that is taking place in South Africa.
Whatever the reason, the government is kicking down doors and arresting people that are critical of them.
******
Crime bloggers in South Africa arrested, update, balanced view
This was written by Adriana Stuijt (Censorbugbear) and gives us a balanced view on the events of the bloggers being arrested in South Africa.
Was one of South Africa’s most vitriolic rage-bloggers arrested because there’s a crack-down on anti-crime bloggers? Or is something else at play?
November 5 2009. With an appeal now being heard in the Canadian law courts about the Brandon Huntley asylum-seeking case and with the FIFA World Cup 2010 tournaments getting ever closer, a number of bloggers who highlight the South African crime epidemics have had their computers confiscated since yesterday. One particularly vitriolic blogger, Uhuru Guru of the site ZA Sucks, was arrested and jailed for a night and released the next day without charges.
However things aren’t nearly as crystal clear as may be presented by the arrested blogger. He’s an IT-businessman who publishes his hard-hitting and often very crude and deeply angry commentary about the SA crime situation on his rage-site http://www.zasucks.com/ . We confirmed that he was arrested by a Captain v.d. L. and held in an overnight police prison cell last night. However – he was set free without any charges the next day, with the senior state prosecutor noting that he was picked up for a nineteen-year-old crimen-injuria complaint which had not even been properly investigated – and that he thus refused to put it on the Court roll. His relatives and friends say that he was arrested just to ‘punish’ him for criticising the South African government -- to throw him in the infamously filthy and often dangerous police cells and spend a night with hardened criminals in jail. They also publicly named a well-known conservative, a Mr Fred Rundle, as having turned him in to the police: Read: http://www.zasucks.com/?p=6344
New information:
However, new information has now come to light – and things may not be all as they were presented. This case may instead involve a formal charge lodged by Rundle, involving suspected internet identity theft. I have received a communication to this effect from Rundle – the man who was accused by UG of having turned him in to the police – and which I publish partially with Mr Rundle’s permission in the interest of presenting a balanced view. One must bear in mind that this is an ongoing investigation by the police and that thus many details have to be omitted in order to follow the ‘sub-judice’ rule:
I do publish some details however in the interest of providing a balanced report. In the end, the guilt or innocence of these warring parties will have to be decided not by the readers of these blogs – but by the law courts, depending on what the police find on these confiscated computers. I will however try and present the facts as they are now known to me at this moment. If new facts come to light, I will publish those too – as long as they remain inside the legally-permitted bounds of publication, of course.
Email from Fred Rundle to Adriana Stuijt
Subject: Uhuru Guru
Nov 5 2009. "My name is Fred Rundle. I value the my good name and I have been invited by many organisations to address them. I do not smoke or drink and I live a very clean and disciplined life. I was the Johannesburg leader of the Volksfront and also the Witwatersrand Regional Chairman of the Conservative Party. I stood in 3 elections as a candidate, paying for everything out of my own pocket. I spoke at the United Nations in Geneva in 1995, appealing to them to recognise my people as indigenous people in South Africa.
“I have noted how Doodler (name deleted since the case is sub-judice) is trying to sweep up emotions about his brother Uhuru Guru to evoke sympathy for him. The facts are totally different to what they are trying to make everybody believe. Uhuru Guru was the man who repaired my computer and we became friends. He subsequently apparently was able to take over my email address fredrundle@gmail.com as well as my Facebook blog site - since I could no longer access either. My grandchildren then brought my attention to my Facebook and told me to 'delete the filth from it'. I was unable to do so… I then contacted a very good computer-literate friend, and he managed to get my email and my Facebook back for me. Out of desperation, I decided to contact the police to clear my good name. I had no other option but to take the action I did. The following Facebook is my authorised blog:” http://www.facebook.com/reqs.php#/profile.php?id=1289378575&ref=pymk Fred Rundle “
Shockwaves among SA bloggers:
This arrest and the confiscation of other computers owned by Witwatersrand bloggers yesterday, have however sent shockwaves throughout the South African cyber-community – and this indicates that there may well be more behind this story – and that the Rundle complaint may just have been used as an excuse to start sweeping these pesky bloggers off South African cyberspace.
They have all been focusing most of their efforts on highlighting the country’s horrendously deadly crime-rate – which is the worst in the world and they have every right to complain.
There are hundreds of blogs out there, all reporting details of the horrendous South African crime-epidemic, in various degrees of rage and anger. Some also call for the boycot of the WC2010 – indeed a quest I also support, since I believe it is irresponsible to let so many tens of thousands of hapless tourists walk into such a dangerous community with so many tens of thousands of armed criminal gangs, all looking to loot them in any way they can…. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1026941238&ref=name#/note.php?note_id=193643924807&ref=mf
The blogger Uhuru Guru was arrested by, according to a relative, “a massive contingent of police from no less than five different specialist units, ranging from Organised Crime, Cyber crime, vehicle theft, etc; “ who raided his home and confiscated all his computer equipment. “
Dr Dan Roodt of PRAAG noted on their website that “PRAAG had been notified some days ago out of a source within the ANC that a group of white Afrikaners within the police services had to motivate their own budgets and jobs due to transformation pressure by spying on a fictive ‘right-wing danger’. Praag writes: “Apparently the ANC regime has decided to embark on a hard-handed approach against websites which highlight the country’s problems such as crime and suppression of minorities. An anonymous campaign has also been carried out at the LitNet site against the South Africa Sucks’ crime reports.” http://www.praag.co.za/nuus-magazine-402/suider-afrika-magazine-400/6304-ystervuis-teen-webwerwe.html
Can SA apply the label ‘liberal democracy?”
Dr. Roodt has published a statement declaring that there are ‘no links between PRAAG and South Africa Sucks. “While SAS’s main focus is on crime and South Africa’s racial problems, our site, www.praag.co.za, wants to remain an independent, cultured cybernews source which inform readers about many subjects and provide fearless but dignified commentary. However while the facts about crime in South Africa are being reported correctly on South Africa Sucks, they also maintain a polemic and defiant tone which is not our style. At the same time it is Uhuru Guru’s good right – provided South Africa is a democracy with freedom of speech – to do so. The present incidents however makes one doubt whether South Africa can apply the label of a ‘liberal democracy’ any longer.’
