Wednesday, October 6, 2010

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Tracy Hancock.

Making headlines:

The ruling African National Congress (ANC) has the print media in its sights because it is the one section of the media not under its control, press ombudsman Joe Thloloe told a University of Pretoria debate on media freedom on Tuesday. He said that the ANC, which proposed the establishment of a media tribunal, had only focused on print media. There had been no analysis of what radio or television broadcasters were doing. "What has happened, is that they have found a scapegoat," Thloloe said.
Mail & Guardian editor Nic Dawes said that the media had failed to show how the proposed Protection of Information Bill would not only affect the media, but South Africans as a whole. The ANC had a "raft of proposals" that was leading South Africa away from a "robust society" to a "controlled society", he said.
Also speaking at the debate, Presidential spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said that the most dangerous threat to media freedom is "the denial that [the media's] self-regulation is inefficient."

Donors pledged over $11,5-billion on Tuesday to fight HIV/Aids, malaria and tuberculosis (TB) over the next three years. But Global Fund to Fight HIV/Aids, TB and Malaria executive director Michel Kazatchkine said that it was not enough to protect millions of people at risk.
Announcing the figure raised by a two-day conference in New York, United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon said that the pledges "sent a powerful message" but that funding demands were "likely to outstrip even the impressive commitments made today."
Tuesday's replenishment meeting - at which more than 40 countries, private foundations and corporations were asked to make pledges - was designed to attract at least $13-billion, with hopes for up to $20-billion for the years 2011 to 2013. Kazatchkine acknowledged that the global economic recession has made times hard for donors, but said that political priorities still had to be set. "In the end, it's still a political choice whether you invest in development or in other areas," he said.

Sanctions imposed against Zimbabwe should be removed to motivate that country and demonstrate good faith, said Botswana President Ian Khama on Tuesday.
Speaking at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on a State visit to South Africa, Khama said: "We also have concerns, but let's remove the (sanctions) to demonstrate good faith and see where we go from there."
Khama, who has been critical of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe in the past, said that concerned parties in Zimbabwe also felt that sanctions were a hindrance.

Also making headlines:

Guinea sets the date of its delayed second round of Presidential elections for October 24, in what appears to signal the end of a row over the leadership of the national election body that has threatened to derail the transition to civilian rule.
The South African government sidesteps opposition objections to President Jacob Zuma's flight details being kept secret, saying that classified information is overseen by Parliament's Joint Standing Committee on Defence.
Sudan announces a long-awaited timetable for a January 2011 referendum on the independence of the oil-producing south, with preparations already behind schedule.
And, United Nations peacekeepers capture the rebel commander accused of masterminding the rape of hundreds of villagers in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in August.

That's a roundup of news making headlines today.