The Chief Justice of Swaziland Michael Ramodibedi has threatened local
media against scandalising courts, after newspapers criticised him.
Ramodibedi and two other Swazi judges made a public
statement after newspapers criticised Ramodibedi’s involvement in a High Court
case involving a High Court Clerk, Sabatha Gumedze, who had resisted an attempt
to transfer her to the Manzini Magistrates Court.
The statement from the CJ, jointly written with Justices
Bheki Maphalala and Mumcy Dlamini, read ‘We must take this opportunity to warn
the newspapers that scandalising the courts is an offence called contempt of
court. In this matter the newspapers published a malicious story that the Chief
Justice presided over a matter he dealt with prior to litigation.
‘That was completely false and those newspapers know it
for a fact. It is for that reason that no application for recusal was made.
Similarly, the so called law experts do a disservice to the nation by giving
false legal opinions to newspapers. Genuine law experts make submissions in
court.’
The threat to journalists of punishment for scandalising
the court is a real one in Swaziland.
In April 2013 Bheki
Makhubu, the editor of the Nation
magazine, was convicted of ‘scandalising the court’ because he criticised the
Swazi judiciary. He was fined E200,000 (US$22,000) by the High Court and told
if he did not pay within three days he would immediately go to jail for two
years.
His sentence is on hold pending an appeal to the
Swaziland Supreme Court.
See also
OSISA: JUDGES ATTACK PRESS FREEDOM
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