Avusa (formerly Johnic Communications) is making a blunder of epic proportions!
Friday, November 30, 2007 at 2:13PM 
For the first time in South African history a blogger is being prosecuted BY A MEDIA COMPANY for speaking his mind...
There goes freedom of speech! Today at 3pm Avusa (formerly Johnic Communications, the Black Empowerment company that owns many newspapers such as the Sunday Times and the Sowetan) will be having a disciplinary hearing for Llewellyn Kriel. The cause of this hearing is an honest and realistic piece that Kriel wrote about the state of morale at Avusa and its newspapers.
Click here to read the article. I am not suprised by its contents - I know MANY other corporations in South Africa where the feelings and sentiments are pretty much the same as those expressed by Kriel....
Over zealous affirmative action, loss of skills, unequal remuneration, and blatant discrimination are the order of the day in many institutions.
However, what makes this so shocking is that this is a Media company that has gone to court to protect the right to Freedom of Speech for its paper news sites. Yet, when someone speaks the truth about them on the internet they want to shut him down....
I small a rat here... Shame on you Avusa.
I for one will not be buying either the Sunday Times or the Sowetan if this is your approach to freedom of speech.
You can read a detailed report on this matter here.
Technorati tags: Freedom of speech, discrimination, Avusa, Johnic Communications
Reader Comments (1)
That is a very old and long-standing tradition in South African journalism.
Long before the time of blogs, expression of opinion elsewhere, especially opinion that the management did not like, was punished. At least, in the new South Africa, he is having a hearing. I was summarily dismissed, as were many others I know.