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Article: Lion hunting posters battle
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International NGO Avaaz.org on Sunday announced that they were taking Acsa and Primedia to court for removing posters about lion hunting from OR Tambo International Airport.
"Ripping down these ads smacks of censorship and silences the voices of 700,000 people who care deeply about saving South Africa's lions," Avaaz executive director, Ricken Patel said in a statement.
"Ripping down these ads smacks of censorship and silences the voices of 700,000 people who care deeply about saving South Africa's lions," Avaaz executive director, Ricken Patel said in a statement.
Rocket Raccoon
Executive Member
*Kanye West voice*
Jacob Zuma doesn't care about p***y.
Jacob Zuma doesn't care about p***y.
grok
Honorary Master
I wonder, will he need a shower afterwards?
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
At least it didn't have a penis on it.
Oh wait, maybe it did.
Oh wait, maybe it did.
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Avaaz Takes Government to Court
Global online civic organisation Avaaz will bring a free speech lawsuit against the South African government at the High Court in Johannesburg on Monday.
The suit is being brought after advertisements at OR Tambo international airport, calling for an end to the trade in lion bones in Asia, were pulled down.
Avaaz alleges the government violated the constitution by pulling down the posters.
Avaaz was formed in January 2007 with the intention of organising citizens from around the world to take action on matters that are important to them.
Source : Sapa /aw/ma/mm
Date : 27 May 2013 02:04
Global online civic organisation Avaaz will bring a free speech lawsuit against the South African government at the High Court in Johannesburg on Monday.
The suit is being brought after advertisements at OR Tambo international airport, calling for an end to the trade in lion bones in Asia, were pulled down.
Avaaz alleges the government violated the constitution by pulling down the posters.
Avaaz was formed in January 2007 with the intention of organising citizens from around the world to take action on matters that are important to them.
Source : Sapa /aw/ma/mm
Date : 27 May 2013 02:04
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Court action seeking to reinstate an advertising campaign to stop the trade in lion bones got underway in the High Court in Johannesburg on Monday.
It has been brought by global civic organisation Avaaz against the Airports Company SA (Acsa).
Stephen Budlender, for Avaaz, told the court the advert at OR Tambo International Airport outside Johannesburg featured an image of a lioness looking down the barrel of a gun with an image of President Jacob Zuma in the background.
It carried the line: "President Zuma can save her life."
A message underneath the image said: "Our lions are being slaughtered to make bogus sex potions for Asia. Will President Zuma save them? Urge him to stop the deadly bone trade now."
Media group Primedia was contracted to arrange production and placement, with pre-approval of the content by a lawyer as part of the group's global civil action.
The campaign, called "Stop the lion bone trade campaign", cost R198,000 and would have run in August 2012, for a month. It was taken down after nine days.
The poster followed a petition to Zuma and correspondence with his office.
The court heard that latest government statistics showed a 250 percent increase in lion bone exports between 2008 and 2010.
Avaaz submitted on Monday that the removal of the advert was unlawful on three grounds.
It constituted a breach of contract between Primedia and Avaaz; the constitutional right to freedom of expression in terms of section 16 of the Constitution; and the constitutional right to administrative action in terms of the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (Paja).
Budlender said the advertisement was not unlawful in terms of advertising standards, hate speech, or defamation.
It had been approved by a Primedia lawyer and there had been no complaints about it while on display in the international arrivals hall.
It was only after a journalist asked Acsa for permission to take a photograph of it that the company acted.
Acsa communications manager Solomon Makgale recommended that permission not be granted to the journalist or images of the poster supplied, and that the journalist rather be referred to Primedia.
He also asked then assistant general manager Tebogo Mekgoe to prepare a short statement on why the advertisement should not be allowed, and asked him how it should be managed.
Budlender said that in response Mekgoe had stated "...there is an implicit message in the content of the advert that says the President (personally) is currently standing by while our lions are being killed and is complicit in the killing".
He urged Makgale to sensitise the managing director about a potential "public relations nightmare" at an entry point into South Africa.
Budlender said Acsa decided to tell Primedia to remove the advertisement after an one-hour meeting, in which Avaaz was not consulted.
The advert was taken down on August 16.
He said Acsa, as an organ of state, had a constitutional duty to protect freedom of expression, and repeated that the advertisement had not been unlawful in anyway.
Acsa had not applied procedural fairness in ordering it to be removed, also violating Paja.
Avaaz wants the court to order that Acsa's actions were unlawful and that it reinstate the advertisement for the remaining 22 days.
Speaking outside the court, Avaaz global campaigns director Emma Ruby-Sachs said: "We showed that with elephants the key thing that a government can do is to shut down a trade immediately."
Source : Sapa /jje/hdw/dd/jk
Date : 27 May 2013 12:49
It has been brought by global civic organisation Avaaz against the Airports Company SA (Acsa).
Stephen Budlender, for Avaaz, told the court the advert at OR Tambo International Airport outside Johannesburg featured an image of a lioness looking down the barrel of a gun with an image of President Jacob Zuma in the background.
It carried the line: "President Zuma can save her life."
A message underneath the image said: "Our lions are being slaughtered to make bogus sex potions for Asia. Will President Zuma save them? Urge him to stop the deadly bone trade now."
Media group Primedia was contracted to arrange production and placement, with pre-approval of the content by a lawyer as part of the group's global civil action.
The campaign, called "Stop the lion bone trade campaign", cost R198,000 and would have run in August 2012, for a month. It was taken down after nine days.
The poster followed a petition to Zuma and correspondence with his office.
The court heard that latest government statistics showed a 250 percent increase in lion bone exports between 2008 and 2010.
Avaaz submitted on Monday that the removal of the advert was unlawful on three grounds.
It constituted a breach of contract between Primedia and Avaaz; the constitutional right to freedom of expression in terms of section 16 of the Constitution; and the constitutional right to administrative action in terms of the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (Paja).
Budlender said the advertisement was not unlawful in terms of advertising standards, hate speech, or defamation.
It had been approved by a Primedia lawyer and there had been no complaints about it while on display in the international arrivals hall.
It was only after a journalist asked Acsa for permission to take a photograph of it that the company acted.
Acsa communications manager Solomon Makgale recommended that permission not be granted to the journalist or images of the poster supplied, and that the journalist rather be referred to Primedia.
He also asked then assistant general manager Tebogo Mekgoe to prepare a short statement on why the advertisement should not be allowed, and asked him how it should be managed.
Budlender said that in response Mekgoe had stated "...there is an implicit message in the content of the advert that says the President (personally) is currently standing by while our lions are being killed and is complicit in the killing".
He urged Makgale to sensitise the managing director about a potential "public relations nightmare" at an entry point into South Africa.
Budlender said Acsa decided to tell Primedia to remove the advertisement after an one-hour meeting, in which Avaaz was not consulted.
The advert was taken down on August 16.
He said Acsa, as an organ of state, had a constitutional duty to protect freedom of expression, and repeated that the advertisement had not been unlawful in anyway.
Acsa had not applied procedural fairness in ordering it to be removed, also violating Paja.
Avaaz wants the court to order that Acsa's actions were unlawful and that it reinstate the advertisement for the remaining 22 days.
Speaking outside the court, Avaaz global campaigns director Emma Ruby-Sachs said: "We showed that with elephants the key thing that a government can do is to shut down a trade immediately."
Source : Sapa /jje/hdw/dd/jk
Date : 27 May 2013 12:49
saksakgp
Expert Member
daveza
Honorary Master
Good luck to Avaaz - nothing wrong with the ad.
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
The Airports Company of SA (Acsa) accepts that its decision to remove Avaaz's anti-lion bone trade campaign posters from OR Tambo International Airport affected its freedom of expression, the High Court in Johannesburg heard on Monday.
But there had to be a balance between Avaaz's rights and Acsa's rights as custodians of the image of the country and the role of "Brand SA".
"Forty images on four sides of 10 pillars at the international arrivals hall do not represent the best image of the country," said Kate Hofmeyr, for Acsa.
The campaign, which featured a picture of a lioness looking down the barrel of a gun with President Jacob Zuma in the background and a message calling on him to take action, ran for nine days last August.
Acsa then told Primedia -- contracted by Avaaz to produce and place the posters -- to take them down.
Avaaz, a global civil action group, took Primedia and Acsa to court, submitting the removal was unlawful because it was a breach of: contract between Primedia and Avaaz; of freedom of expression in terms of section 16 of the Constitution; and the constitutional right to administrative action in terms of the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act.
Avaaz wants an order declaring the removal, after nine days in August, unlawful, and that the campaign be reinstated for the remainder of the 22-day contract period.
Hofmeyr said the image of a lioness looking down the barrel of a gun was not appropriate, given the country's problem with gun violence.
The then Acsa assistant general manager, Tebogo Mekgoe, was concerned about an implication that Zuma might condone hunting lions.
The decision to remove the campaign was taken by four people at an hour-long meeting.
Avaaz itself asked the government before the court action to take action on the trade in lion bones to prevent the "stain" on the country so it, too, was aware of the impact on the country's image.
It had other ways of getting its message across -- through the internet and petitions.
Hofmeyr said an Acsa statement earlier in the dispute that there had been complaints was "factually incorrect". She confirmed there had been no complaints from the public.
Acsa had actually been rational and reasonable in its actions, she contended.
The case continues.
Source : Sapa /jje/jk/dd/th
Date : 27 May 2013 14:38
But there had to be a balance between Avaaz's rights and Acsa's rights as custodians of the image of the country and the role of "Brand SA".
"Forty images on four sides of 10 pillars at the international arrivals hall do not represent the best image of the country," said Kate Hofmeyr, for Acsa.
The campaign, which featured a picture of a lioness looking down the barrel of a gun with President Jacob Zuma in the background and a message calling on him to take action, ran for nine days last August.
Acsa then told Primedia -- contracted by Avaaz to produce and place the posters -- to take them down.
Avaaz, a global civil action group, took Primedia and Acsa to court, submitting the removal was unlawful because it was a breach of: contract between Primedia and Avaaz; of freedom of expression in terms of section 16 of the Constitution; and the constitutional right to administrative action in terms of the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act.
Avaaz wants an order declaring the removal, after nine days in August, unlawful, and that the campaign be reinstated for the remainder of the 22-day contract period.
Hofmeyr said the image of a lioness looking down the barrel of a gun was not appropriate, given the country's problem with gun violence.
The then Acsa assistant general manager, Tebogo Mekgoe, was concerned about an implication that Zuma might condone hunting lions.
The decision to remove the campaign was taken by four people at an hour-long meeting.
Avaaz itself asked the government before the court action to take action on the trade in lion bones to prevent the "stain" on the country so it, too, was aware of the impact on the country's image.
It had other ways of getting its message across -- through the internet and petitions.
Hofmeyr said an Acsa statement earlier in the dispute that there had been complaints was "factually incorrect". She confirmed there had been no complaints from the public.
Acsa had actually been rational and reasonable in its actions, she contended.
The case continues.
Source : Sapa /jje/jk/dd/th
Date : 27 May 2013 14:38
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Judgment was reserved on Monday in global civil action group Avaaz's application to get the Airports Company of SA (Acsa) to reinstate an advertising campaign against the trade in lion bones.
Acting Judge Frank Bashall, at the High Court in Johannesburg, said he hoped to hand down judgment after the upcoming court recess.
Acsa asked Primedia, who had been commissioned to produce and place the posters, to remove them from OR Tambo International Airport after a journalist asked for permission to take pictures.
The posters were removed after nine days of the campaign, which was supposed to run for the month of August 2012.
Initially an assistant general manager expressed concern that the posters implied that President Jacob Zuma condoned the trade in lion bones. Avaaz has said the bones were intended for use in sex-enhancing medicine.
The advertisement featured a picture of a lioness staring down the barrel of a gun, with an image of Zuma in the background, and a message calling on Zuma to stop the trade.
The posters were placed on pillars in the international arrivals hall. Acsa decided it was not in the best interests of the country's image for visitors to see this, and told Primedia to remove the posters, which it did.
Avaaz contends this was a violation of the constitutional right to free expression and administrative justice laws, and hope Bashall would order they be displayed for the remainder of the one-month campaign.
Source : Sapa /jje/jk/dd/th
Date : 27 May 2013 15:23
Acting Judge Frank Bashall, at the High Court in Johannesburg, said he hoped to hand down judgment after the upcoming court recess.
Acsa asked Primedia, who had been commissioned to produce and place the posters, to remove them from OR Tambo International Airport after a journalist asked for permission to take pictures.
The posters were removed after nine days of the campaign, which was supposed to run for the month of August 2012.
Initially an assistant general manager expressed concern that the posters implied that President Jacob Zuma condoned the trade in lion bones. Avaaz has said the bones were intended for use in sex-enhancing medicine.
The advertisement featured a picture of a lioness staring down the barrel of a gun, with an image of Zuma in the background, and a message calling on Zuma to stop the trade.
The posters were placed on pillars in the international arrivals hall. Acsa decided it was not in the best interests of the country's image for visitors to see this, and told Primedia to remove the posters, which it did.
Avaaz contends this was a violation of the constitutional right to free expression and administrative justice laws, and hope Bashall would order they be displayed for the remainder of the one-month campaign.
Source : Sapa /jje/jk/dd/th
Date : 27 May 2013 15:23