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#South-Africa-election-update-2024
The SABC headquarters in Auckland Park, Johannesburg, now faces a hefty fine for breaching broadcast regulations in the lead-up to the elections.
The penalty comes after the SABC’s refusal to broadcast the DA’s campaign advertisement, which featured the controversial imagery of a burning national flag.
The advertisement, which was intended to be part of the DA’s campaign narrative, symbolising the country’s socio-economic challenges, was rejected by the SABC on the grounds that it incited damage to national symbols.
This decision led to an uproar withinthe political the political and public domains, with the DA lodging a complaint with ICASA, claiming their right to freedom of expression had been infringed upon.
After deliberation, ICASA’s Complaints & Compliance Committee (CCC) found the public broadcaster’s actions to have “no legal basis” under the Electronic Communications Act No. 36 of 2005 or the relevant regulations.
The authority has directed the SABC to cease its practice of refusing to broadcast the DA’s political advertisement and to air the contentious advertisement advertisement.
The CCC found the SABC in violation of sections 58 (1) and 58 (3) of the ECA, along with the associated regulations, for its unwarranted refusal to broadcast the DA’s ad.
As a result, the CCC has proposed a fine of R500,000 against the SABC for this regulatory infringement and has suggested that ICASA should instruct the SABC accordingly.
The Communications Compliance Committee (CCC) has proposed a penalty of R500,000 against the SABC for violating specific regulations.
Additionally, it has urged ICASA to instruct the SABC to stop its refusal to air a particular advertisement and to comply with its statutory duties by broadcasting it.
These suggestions to the Authority, under Section 17(e), considered the disadvantage suffered by the DA as a result of the SABC’s decision not to broadcast its political ads.
The recommendations from the complaints and compliance committee were ratified by ICASA in a recent meeting May 24. Following this, ICASA has ordered the national broadcaster to transmit the DA’s advertisement.
The ruling is a pivotal development in the ongoing discourse on the function of public broadcasters in the realm of political advertising.
It highlights the critical need to maintain fairness and neutrality within the media space, especially in times of elections.
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