Cde,The minister was misled by Libya should she have argued without proof. You can't hold the messenger responsible for being given wrong msgs by Libya gvt. Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device
-----Original Message----- From: "Setja Diphoko" <[email protected]> Sender: [email protected] Date: Fri, 20 May 2011 19:30:34 To: YCLSA Forum<[email protected]> Reply-To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [YCLSA Discussion] Government slated over Hammerl Comrades, I still repeat, The Minister of the Department of International Relations and Co-Operation’s (Dirco) is a liability both to Africa and South Africa Communist regards, Lesetja Diphoko "Sent via my BlackBerry" -----Original Message----- From: matankana mothapo <[email protected]> Sender: [email protected] Date: Fri, 20 May 2011 21:16:28 To: <[email protected]> Reply-To: [email protected] Subject: [YCLSA Discussion] Government slated over Hammerl Government slated over Hammerl As the death of Anton Hammerl filters through South Africa, questions are being asked about how his death was concealed for over 6 weeks NICKOLAUS BAUER & DES LATHAM Published: 2011/05/20 01:36:05 PM Analysts are questioning the Department of International Relations and Co-Operation’s (Dirco) ability to look after South Africans abroad in the aftermath of photographer Anton Hammerl’s death. Hammerl was confirmed was confirmed dead on Friday after going missing in Libya in April. The photographer had been covering the civil conflict in the country and was presumed to be held by pro-Gaddafi forces. This notion was supported by Dirco minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, who claimed she had news, on good authority that Hammerl was alive and in captivity. It has since been established Hammerl died as a result of gun shot wounds sustained on April 5th. American journalists Clare Morgana Gillis and James Foley, and Spanish photographer Manuel Brabu, were with Hammerl when he was shot in the stomach in the desert near Brega. "Our minister has got some serious explaining to do. She claims he was alive and well when she clearly did not know that. She brutally misled the South African public and Anton Hammerl’s family," Professor Anton Harber of the School of Journalism at the University of Witwatersrand told Business Day. Following his death, Dirco said the Libyan government lied to South Africa about Hammerl. "We kept getting reassured at the highest level that he was alive until his colleagues were released and shared the information yesterday (Thursday)," she told reporters in Pretoria on Friday. "We are disappointed that we were not informed by Libyan authorities, but from the journalists who were with him." This seems to have been accepted by the South African National Press Club, whose chairman Yusuf Abramjee told Business Day the body was satisfied the government did all in its power to locate and return Hammerl back to South Africa. "We accept the explanation that they did everything in their power to find out what happened to him. We hope that this serves as a warning not to believe what the Libyan government tells them," Abramjee said. Human Rights Watch emergencies Director Peter Bouckaert has disputed the statement issued by government that over the past 44 days it had done all it could to determine what happened to Hammerl. He has told Business Day that the Americans and Austrians were doing all the ground-work in Tripoli, and that South African officials were noticeably absent. "Part of the problem was the lack of action by the South African government, this is worrying," Bouckaert told Business Day. "When I was interviewed on SABC Radio and criticised President Jacob Zuma for not bringing up Hammerl’s disappearance when he met Gaddafi, I was suddenly cut off," said Bouckaert. The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has also issued a statement calling for a full investigation into the mater by Dirco. "As CWU, we condemn the killing of Hammerl and the continued onslaught on protesters by Gaddafi’s forces in Lybia. We call on the South African’s International Relations Minister to sanction an investigation into the circumstances leading to the arrest and the subsequent killing of Anton Hammerl." Renowned South African conflict photographer Gerg Marinovich also added his voice to the chorus of discontent with the South African government. "This is what happens in war-zones, people die and journalists are not exempt from that but the manner in which it happened is tragic and gory. The government took the word of the Libyans at face value, he wasn’t a priority for the South African government - he was nothing," Marinovich said. [email protected] - Hammerl killed in Libya<http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/Content.aspx?id=143300> -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. 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