The South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) has condemned the armed robbery in which employees at television channel INX Prime were held at gunpoint at their offices in Houghton, Johannesburg, on Monday, saying there had been an increase in attacks on journalists.
No one was injured in the attack by several armed robbers.
INX Prime chief executive Farhad Omar said he believed the robbery was not a random one, adding that a computer that was stolen during the incident was used to hack the company’s server in the early hours of Tuesday. The military precision of the robbery was also concerning, Omar said.
“We will not back down, we will not be intimidated and we will continue to tell the stories you seek to silence,” he said.
According to Sanef, a large amount of broadcast equipment including computers and television screens were stolen during the robbery.
Crime continues to be one of the biggest scourges in the country, with journalists and their equipment not spared, Sanef chairperson Sbu Ngalwa said.
“We hope that the latest unfortunate robbery will spur the police to act and seek to arrest these criminals,” he added,
A criminal case has been opened with the South African Police Service and INX Prime has told Sanef that it is improving its security measures.
INX Prime has been on air for four months, broadcasting across sub-Saharan Africa on direct broadcast satellite service DStv’s channel 345.
The Government Communications and Information System (GCIS) said the attack on a platform that is striving to tell the African story was “particularly disheartening”.
“The media is a platform to amplify voice, facilitate meaningful participation, disseminate key information and foster social change. South Africa’s media landscape is strong, dynamic and independent and free and we must do all in our power to protect the media,” said GCIS acting director general Michael Currin.
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