STATEMENT BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL EDITORS' FORUM (SANEF)

The South African National Editors' Forum (Sanef) today joined Media24 in its application to have the criminal case against the alleged killers of Eugene Terre'blanche opened to the media and the public.

The Child Justice Act, which has been invoked by the prosecution authorities to hold the case in camera, allows the presiding officer to use his discretion in this regard. We strongly urge the magistrate to strike a blow for transparency and open justice.

News of Terre'blanche's killing has been widely reported in the local and international media. Sanef believes the enormous public interest in the trial and the imperatives of open justice are overwhelmingly against conducting the trial in secret.

The victim's prominence as a leader of the rightwing AWB has sparked widespread speculation as to the motive behind the crime.

The public has a right to know the full story as it unfolds in court.

The public and the media are entitled to hear the evidence firsthand instead of relying on summaries supplied to the media by the prosecution and the defence outside the court.

Sanef is mindful of the need protect the rights of the minor accused in this case but notes that the media has covered such sensitive cases before without damage to the justice process.

Sanef is the second applicant in the matter and Independent Newspapers is the third.

Statement issued by Thabo Leshilo & Raymond Louw, South African National Editor's Forum, April 13 2010

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