STOP THE FILM AND PUBLICATIONS BOARD'S ATTEMPT TO CENSOR THE INTERNET
10 March 2015
The Right2Know Campaign calls on the public to reject the Film and Publications Board's (FPB) proposals to censor the internet in South Africa. The FPB wants broadly defined powers to police everything published on the Internet - including blogs, personal websites and Facebook pages.
The Right2Know Campaign demands that the Film and Publications Board to scrap the Draft Online Regulation Policy document gazetted on Wednesday, 4 March 2015. The FPB must desist from any attempt to exercise pre-publication censorship of Internet content.
The document, in its vague language and open-ended statements, would leave authorities with far too much room to infringe on the public's right to freely receive and impart information as enshrined in chapter two of the Constitution.
The document states that: "Any person who intends to distribute any film, game, or certain publication in the Republic of South Africa shall first comply with section 18(1) of the [1996 Films and Publications] Act by applying, in the prescribed manner, for registration as film or game and publications distributor."