CRITICISM AND CENSORSHIP IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN ââ¬ÅALTERNATIVEââ¬Â PRESS WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO THE CARTOONS OF BAUER AND ZAPIRO
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
Cartooning is an extremely heterogeneous practice whose genealogy can be traced back to caricature (1). This paper does not concern itself with the diversity that can be found in the cartoons Derek Bauer and Jonathan Shapiro (Zapiro)2, but rather chooses to focus on the potential of cartooning as a critical a practice.
Given that the "flipside" of criticism is censorship, the effects of censorship on cartooning together with cartooning's response to censorship will also be examined.
Cartoons published in the alternative press after the 1985 declaration of a state Emergency, but preceding the unbanning of political organisations February 1990, which comment directly on press or political censorship, as well as those which raise issues pertinent to censorship, provide the basis for examining the converse notions of criticism and censorship.
Having said this it should also be stated at the outset that whilst this paper focuses on particular cartoons produced specific historical circumstances, it is also intended that this paper will have broader implications for the development of contemporary critical art practice.
This paper proceeds from the premise that criticism and censorship are oppositional and antagonistic concepts which seldom appear alone. Criticism, particularly when expressed publicly and directed at specific interest groups (eg. a ruling elite) frequently evokes censorship, whilst censorship and repression and resistance.
The need for public criticism of the dominant order exists in any unjust society and South Africa is no exception. Characterized gross social inequalities and stark contradictions, unjust societies, particularly those in crisis provide fertile grounds for political cartoonists. 3
Historically, highlighting grievances has been a common method of political agitation and mass-mobilization adopted by resistance movements. However this paper is not only concerned with this fundamental form of criticism, which is essentially the criticism of others, but also with exploring the notions of constructive criticism and self criticism, and the implications these notions have for critical art practice.
As a qualified form of criticism, constructive criticism should not be mistaken for or confused with censorship. Rather the notion of constructive criticism is developed from the position that identifying grievances is only the beginning of solving a problem. Constructive criticism poses alternatives in order to arrive at a solution. Constructive criticism is based on the belief that a truly critical intervention is part of a process of social and political reconstruction.
Self criticism is generally a less public form of criticism than the strands identified above, but is nonetheless an important aspect of developing a "real" rather than "solidarity" criticism (4) if South Africa is to develop what Albie Sachs has called a "culture of debate" (5). These notions will be returned to during the course of this paper. (6)
Given that cartooning provides the focal point for this paper, the form of censorship most discussed in this paper is that of press censorship. However it is necessary to contextualise press censorship within the broader context of political censorship. The political role of press censorship is clearly articulated by Anton Harber, co-editor of the Weekly Mail, when he writes:
Censorship provides the veil behind which other forms of repression can take place and be hidden from the public eye. Control over information in a divided country like South Africa is control over people - an ignorant people are less able to act, to organize, to campaign and to take control over their own lives giving people access to information and a greater range of views is part of a process of empowerment - it gives them the times of social crisis.
wherewithal to make their own decisions and to organize themselves. " (7)
Press censorship in South Africa is seen by the opponents of the Nationalist Party government as "part of a broader strategy to neutralize the anti-apartheid movement" (8). Press freedom then must be seen as "inseparable from other basic freedoms" (9)
Consistent with this view of press censorship as merely one membership one aspect of political censorship, the monthly newsletter published by the Anti-censorship Action Group (ACAG) (10) does not only list incidents which directly involve the press, but also includes information pertaining to the restriction of political organisations, activities and individuals.
These include listings of numerous banning, restrictions, detentions, imprisonment, fines (11), warnings, threats (12), harassment, obstructionism (eg. arbitrary cost of registering publications or long drawn out court proceedings (13), the withholding of visas, work permits and passports (14), as well as abductions, arson, teargassing, shootings and the extreme acts of capital punishment and assassination of political opponents. (15)
It is clear from the methods briefly mentioned above that formal (or statutory) censorship is accompanied by informal means of repression. Deliberately vague drafted legislation, as well as sweeping police powers (particularly under the State of Emergency) help create a climate of fear which encourages self-censorship. (16)
In addition to curbing the flow of information, censorship of the media is usually accompanied by processes of disinformation (17). Disinformation manifests itself in the compilation of school curricula where history may be re-written from the perspective of ruling class, as well as in the selection and presentation of news particularly through state or semi-state media organs such as the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), which is generally perceived by the opponents of the Nationalist Party government as a mouthpiece for government propaganda. (18)
It is clear from the above that censorship manifests itself in numerous ways. This paper does not seek to address each and every manifestation of censorship. Cartoons which specifically address press censorship and disinformation, as well as a select few which comment directly on restriction of political activity have been prioritized.
Outlined above are forms of censorship which are practiced against the political opponents of the present government. However censorship is not unknown within the ranks of the political Left. The fear of being labelled "divisive" or a "dissident" should one express one's own private view when that particular view contradicts the party line is a very real one. This point is however, very complex and not simply evidence of a lingering "Stalinism". It should not be forgotten that political organisations were forced by material conditions to develop secret methods of operating which were by their very nature "undemocratic". Self-criticism, particularly if aired through the mass media, risked inadvertently contributing to the barrage of negative criticism and disinformation already directed at liberation movements. (19)
The unbanning of political organisations on the 2nd February 1990 brings with it however the need for open debate. Njabulo Ndebele, president of the Congress of South Africa Writes (COSAW) commented on this evolving situation when he noted at the COSAW Annual General Meeting on the 24th June 1990 that "...the culture of resistance has often subjected the individual to the total power of the group. This may have led to a situation where individuals are afraid of expressing private fears...The coming of freedom means also the freedom to express our fears...". (20)
Many editors, journalists, writers, academics, and artists, both liberal and radical, have publically expressed opposition to censorship by founding and joining organisations, most of whom are represented in the Campaign for an Open Media (COM) (21). Irwin Manoim, co-editor of the Weekly Mail, when asked if press censorship was warranted in certain circumstances, replied that "Censorship is an attempt to deal with social problems by suppressing evidence of them." (22)
Qualified support for the abolition of censorship is also not unknown. For instance University of the Western Cape Afrikaans lecturer Ample Coetzee has expressed the position that "Publishers should not publish books that contain any form of racism or ideological apartheid." (23)
Indeed the draft Bill of Rights proposed by the ANC explicitly outlaws racism (24). Will this logic be extended to visual representations, such as those which perpetuate racial stereotypes which may be deemed offensive? Should it be? These are questions South Africans need not to debate, but which fall out of the scope of this particular paper
Historically critical graphics have required sympathetic publishers. In South Africa this role has been played in recent years by what is usually referred to as the "alternative" press (25). A fair amount of detail on the alternative press is presented here because "it is necessary to recognize the heterogeneous character of the term in order to ascertain to what extent the cartoons of Bauer and Zapiro may be perceived as "alternative or "independent".
The term alternative press is usually employed to describe publications which function outside of the "mainstream", "commercial" or "monopoly" press (26), ie. those publications not represented by the Newspaper Press Union (NPU). (27)
In addition publications labelled "alternative" are usually assumed to display "leftist" political tendencies right wing publications are never spoken of as part of the alternative press.
While certain common ideological characteristics, such as being defiantly anti-apartheid, may distinguish the "alternative" from the "mainstream", it would be a mistake not to recognize the alternative press as in itself representing a heterogeneous grouping. The term is used to refer to weekly publications such as the Weekly Mail. South (SB), New Nation (29), Vrye weekblad (30), and New African (31), as well as to locally produced and distributed "community" newspapers such as Grassroots (32), Saamstaan (33), Indicator. and Al Qalam (34), and to organisational and trade union publications eg COSATU News and UDF News. The student press organized under the South African Students Press Union (SASPU), of which there are more than sixty affiliates, is also an important component of the alternative press, as are progressive journals such as Work in Progress (WIP) (35), and the SA Labour Bulletin, as well s magazine such as New Era (36). Numerous other educational, literacy, religious and childrens publications are also classified as part of the alternative press. (37)
Some of these publications are overtly identified with specific political organisations eg UDF News, others such as the New Nation (38), and to a lesser extent South (39), have become increasingly closer to the African National Congress (ANC), South African Communist Party (SACP), Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and United Democratic Front (UDF) alliance. Other alternative publications, particularly those who aim at a more "educated" or "academic" audience, such as the Weekly Mail (40), and WIP (41) are perhaps the most ideologically independent.
Most, if not all "alternative " publications were launched with the conviction that the political, economic and cultural realities experience by the majority of South Africans were not being accurately reflected in the "mainstream" press (42)
The staff of Grassroots, which is often cited as a "pioneer" of the alternative press (43), wrote in an early statement of objectives in 1980 "The present mass media in this country does not meet the needs and aspirations of the people. Neither are the people's problems and organisational efforts reflected in the dally newspapers since these articles are not considered to be 'newsworthy'". (44)
Much of what historically has been considered "newsworthy" has been rejected by these publications. Sensationalism (45) and sexism (46), two of the stock components of the commercial press are largely absent from these publications.
Many of these publications have also attempted to challenge traditional methods of publishing with varying degrees of success. One of the most significant examples of this is the existence of editorial collectives rather than traditional hierarchies. This can be recognized as part of a democratic organisational publications. While some papers such as South are on record as stating the problems of attempting to democratize the processes of publication (47), others such as the New Nation have claimed success in this respect (48).
But perhaps the most important characteristic of the alternative press is that despite the fact that most of these publications have a circulation far smaller than the newspapers published by the large newspaper companies (49), there is a general perception by its proponents that these publications represent the views or interests of the vast majority of South Africans (50).
While the emphasis on this "vanguardism" differs between some of the alternative publications, there is at the end of the day more consensus and ideological common ground between alternative publications themselves, than with the commercial press who are more interested in securing maximum economic profits by selling advertising space than with reflecting the realities of South Africa. (51)
However, while certain persons argue that the term alternative press is a suitable label, others disagree. Rashid Seria, the former editor of South, wrote in early August 1987 that w e are not ashamed of the label 'alternative media... We are different to the commercial media... We have different values." (52). Seria expanded on this in early 1988 at South's Annual General Meeting when he said: "We are an alternative to the established papers in that our preoccupation is not institutionalized structures perceived from a liberal, reformist or official standpoint - nor do we have the shackles of vested interests. Our perspective is our community and the organisations which struggle against apartheid and exploitation, and our message is that of a non-racial democracy in a unitary South Africa." (53)
Other editors whose publications have been labelled "alternative" such as Ameen Akhalwaya of the Lenasia based Indicator, have argued that the term is problematic: "Alternative media is a misnomer. What it implies, is that newspapers like 'Indicator' are different from the type of press one would expect in South Africa. But such newspapers reflect more of the thinking of the majority of the people in this country." (54)
Both the negative and positive characteristics of the term are commented on by former South African Society of Journalists (SASJ) president John Alien;
"If you look at the alternative press as an alternative to the established press, it is a positive description. But the general impression the word 'alternative' gives is that the established press is the press and that the alternative press is something extra, on the side. In fact, however, the alternative press represents the views of a massive majority." (55)
As Irwin Manoim noted in 1986: "The alternative press may not be alternative much longer. The country is changing. The old assumptions upon which the mainstream press was built are being eroded." (56)
A historical analysis of the particular period in which political cartoons are produced is essential to a fuller appreciation of political cartoons. Any ahistorical art-historical study of political cartoons, while being able to comment on the formal conventions and iconography of political cartoons would lose all sense of the cartoons immediate value, or priority. The raison d'etre for political cartoons is to communicate with an immediate audience through the use of visual and literary texts (or parts thereof), which function as signifying systems for the production of meaning, or provide positions for the consumption of meanings.
The cartoons discussed in this paper were all produced in a period of maximum political conflict and under conditions of unprecedented press censorship, but censorship and repression have been with us a lot longer than the period under known a time when the press was not under severe attack by the government. (57)
While a detailed history of political and press censorship exceeds the scope of this paper it is useful to identify certain key dates and events affecting the freedom of the press not only during the period under review, but also preceding it.
Lobbies for censorship in South Africa can be traced back to at least 1898 in the Cape (58), but it is really the coming to power of the Nationalist Party government in 1948 which ushered in unprecedented degrees of censorship. In that year the "contemptible English press" was identified as one of "two evil spirits in South Africa" (the other being "the princes of the church who preach rebellion") by Nationalist Party MP J.C. Greyling in the House of Assembly (59).
The Press Commission of 1950 was mandated to make recommendations on "the internal and external reporting and the general handling of news by the various newspapers and the desirability or otherwise of the control of such reporting." (60)
Steadily over the next 37 years, ie prior to the imposition of a partial state of emergency on the 51st July 1985, press freedom was severely curtailed by the publication of over one hundred laws restricting the flow of information. (61)
The Suppression of Communism Act of 1950 62, the Public Safety Act of 1952 63, the Criminal Laws Amendment Act of 1952 (64), the Defence Act 44 of 1957, the Police Act 7 of 1958, the Prisons Act 8 of 1959, the Publications and Entertainments Act of 1963 (65), Newspaper and Imprint Registration Act of 1971 (66), Publications Act 42 of 1974 (67), the Criminal Procedures Act of 1977, the Protection of Information Act 84 of 1982, the Internal Security Act 74 of 1966 (68), are perhaps the best known of these laws which have all been used to restrict, ban or close publications since 1948. (69)
Perhaps the single most spectacular example of political and press censorship and repression preceding the declaration of a partial State of Emergency on the 21st July 1985 was on the 19th of October 1977 when the government banned 17 black consciousness organisations, two newspapers (the World and Weekend World), one editor (Donald woods of the East London Despatch, and detained another (Percy Qoboza of the World), along with several other prominent journalists. (70)
Given this repressive context the views expressed by Zwelakhe Sisulu (71) at the Writers' Association of South Africa (WASA) conference in Cape Town October 1980 are not hollow rhetoric but rather the expression of the belief that any claims at impartiality in South Africa are in fact evidence of collusion with the ruling class (72). He said :
"In our situation the question is not whether one is a propagandist or not, but whether one is collaborationist propagandist or a revolutionary propagandist. Because we have expressed a desire for radical change in scheme of things, we must be propagandists for change. If expressing the aspirations of the people is propaganda, if propaganda denotes one who opts for a commitment as an alternative to non-commitment, then surely we are propagandists. "
The 1980's saw the closure of several newspapers particularly those aimed at or read by non-white constituencies or adopting a more liberal perspective than the mainstream press (73). The economic recession would take the official credit for the closings and retrenchments which characterize rationalization.
On 15 March 1985 the South African Association of Newspapers (SAAN) announced the closure of the liberal newspapers Rand Daily Mail and Sunday Express (74). They were closed in May 1985 (75).
On the 14th of June 1985 the Weekly Mail was launched by retrenched journalists from the Rand Daily Mail Express and Sunday Express. The Weekly Mail was the only one of the weeklies which existed at the time that the Emergency was imposed in July 1985. It will be seen that despite the climate of closure and retrenchment that characterized the period, the Emergency failed to prevent the emergence of a press committed to disseminating information as boldly and widely as possible.
The emergence and survival of the alternative press owes much to developments in technology, particularly the invention of Desk Top publishing, which effectively changed the rules of publishing. Less labour and skills training is required for production using the new technology. In addition desk-top publishing is in many ways more economical and less cumbersome than the machinery owned by the commercial press, its laser print providing a quality even better than the orthodox printing presses used by the daily newspapers. (76)
By the imposition of the 1985 State of Emergency all the Emergency powers which had been delegated to the security forces in the preceding State of Emergency in the 1960's (77) had been written into the everyday laws of the land. (78)
Apart from further eroding human rights in South Africa by for example, preventing the courts from "setting aside of any order, rule or notice issued under [Emergency] regulations or any condition determined thereunder...",
the Commissioner of Police was given total control over any information relating to police action under the Emergency regulations. (79)
At the beginning of the Emergency the press was warned by Police Commissioner, General Johan Coetzee to scale down coverage of unrest". (80) Coetzee's mandate was formidable: " The Commissioner [of police] may issue orders relating to the control, regulation or prohibition of the announcement, dissemination, distribution, taking or sending of any comment on or news in connection with these regulations or any conduct of a force or any member of a force regarding the maintenance of the safety of the public or the public order or the termination of the state of emergency.". In case this was inadequate the following "ouster" clause was included: "No interdict or other process shall issue for the staying or setting aside of any order, rule or notice issued under these regulations or any order, rule or notice issued under these regulations or any condition determined thereunder..." (81)
In November 1985 new curbs were introduced, including a ban on publishing photographs of "unrest" (82). In March 1986 the State of Emergency was lifted (83), but re-imposed on the 12th June 1986 with "considerably tougher" regulations (84), this time affecting the whole country.
On the 15th June 1986 General Coetzee "Forbade journalists to report or comment on the conduct of any member of the Security Forces engaged in the maintenance of public order. At the same time he barred journalists from entering black townships, or 'any other area in which unrest is occurring', for purpose of reporting what is happening." (85)
The courts successfully challenged aspects of the Emergency regulations declaring some of them invalid. Harber has pointed out that of the five key elements in the Emergency regulations; the 'ouster clause' which attempted to prevent the courts from setting aside Emergency measures; the unchecked powers of arrest and indefinite detention; extensive media curbs including the power to confiscate or suspend 'subversive' publications based simply on the opinion of a cabinet minister or a senior policeman; restrictions on almost all the activities of resistance organisations; as well as providing indemnity for Security Forces acting 'in good faith' under the regulations, were all undermined to some extent by the courts (86).
These decisions were remarkable because of the existence in the Emergency provisions of an ouster clause explicitly stipulating that no court challenge the regulations." (87)
"Nevertheless the prohibition on 'subversive statements' still affects the press on a daily basis because newspapers are at risk of being seized if, in the Minister's opinion, the publication is deemed to be subversive." In addition "Reports on the conduct of Security Forces and photographs of unrest and Security Force conduct are still prohibited. Journalists are not permitted to be present at the scene of unrest." (88)
In late August 1987 South African Minister of Home Affairs Stoffel Botha drew a distinction between ''organized conventional media" and the "unconventional revolution supporting press". In motivating "for greater powers to act against the press Botha argued; "what we are dealing with here is propaganda, and that cannot be dealt with by means of the present legislation" (89).
At that point the Emergency Regulations empowered him to take "action' if in "his opinion" a publication contravenes regulations (90). The regulations conferred wide discretionary powers on the Minister which could not be challenged unless one could prove "bad faith" on the part of the Minister or his assistants. (91)
This created the situation where, as newspaper lawyer Norman Manoim put it: "Propaganda has now become whatever the Minister thinks it is. He has created a category of vague statements. Freedom of the press is whatever he says it is previous media regulations didn't have the same subjective power. The new restrictions have been designed to give the Minister power that would be extremely difficult to test in court. They are sufficiently wide -- even by state of emergency standards - to interpret." (92)
On the 10th December 1987 all newspapers and foreign correspondents were required to submit all future reports on the unrest situation for pre-publications censorship (93).
In February 1988 17 political organisations were "restricted" allowing them only "to maintain offices, conduct administrative work and pursue legal matters."(94), and in March 1988 the New Nation became the first of the alternative publications to be suspended from publication for three months.
However it was when the State of Emergency was renewed on the 12th June 1988 that a turning point in press repression can be identified. Of the new media regulations gazetted one inadvertently served to unite the press both "commercial" and "alternative" for the first time under the banner of the Save the Press Campaign. (95)
This regulation read that: After July 31 it will be illegal for news agencies to operate unless they are registered with the Director General. The name and address of every journalist, commentator, news correspondent or photographer must be supplied.. . illegal to quote banned and restricted organisations." (96)
Section 7 of the media regulations provided for suspension of unregistered publications for up to 6 months. (97)
According to Irwin Manoim: At first, mainstream editors ignored the issue It took their lawyers to convince the publishers of the major newspapers that a 'licensed' press would have credibility with no-one. For the first time, both mainstream and 'alternative' press united on an issue. And for the first time, we succeeded. The registration issue was quietly scrapped." (98)
This did not however mean an easing of censorship and repression. All alternative publications lived with constant reminders of the possibility of closure. In the mid year South was suspended for a month (99), and in November Weekly Mail was similarly silenced. (100)
Ironically rather than crippling alternative publications, international and local support and interest meant that censorship boosted sales. In March 1989 Irwin Manoim noted that: If anything, Stoffel Botha's actions have enhanced our reputation and ensured that circulation soared." (101)
1989 saw an increasing number of court appearances by editors and journalists, with even the editor of the mainstream press Sunday Times, Tertius Myburgh, being charged under the Internal Security Act for quoting a "restricted" person. (102)
The cut off date for the cartoons discussed in this paper (2nd February 1990) represents a relaxing of many of the laws affecting the media, but this does not mean the end of censorship and repression. At time of writing the largest ever libel case instituted against the press in South Africa's history is underway. The case itself concerns allegations published in the Vrye weekblad and Weekly Mail that senior police officers were involved in the assassination of political opponents of the government. (103)
