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The Congress of the People views the report of the manhandling and compulsory erasure of the images of the presidential vehicles taken by the journalist of 702 at Chris Hani- Baragwaneth hospital as very serious and condemns this further heavy-handed act of the VIP protection. There is no law that prohibits journalists from photographing the presidential convoy and there is no suggestion that the said journalist committed any crime in the process. In the circumstances, it seems that the SAPS VIP protection is now being used to throw a blanket ban on reportage on the activities of the president and his entourage. The activities of the presidential VIP threaten the freedom of the press. In the week leading to the commemoration of human rights day such incidents Like the Maxwell incident in Cape Town and the other alleged incidents paint a picture of a VIP unit that is totally out of control and without any respect for the country's laws and the human rights provisions in our constitution.