The Board of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), meeting in Durban, South Africa on 7th June, 2017, calls for renewed global solidarity with the South African press in the wake of threats to independent, free media.

Journalists, civil society groups and the ruling ANC party have gone head to head with South Africa’s public broadcaster, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), since May, when the broadcaster announced that it would no longer air footage of the destruction of public property during protests. The ban has caused a public uproar, with many accusing the broadcaster – the country’s largest – of censorship.

Throughout 2016, WAN-IFRA’s Women in News team members regularly met with Swedish and Norwegian representatives in many of the markets where activities were taking place.

The WAN-IFRA Board issues Press Freedom Resolutions to highlight concerns regarding freedom of expression worldwide, and as a call to action from the global newspaper industry to protect press freedom.