The Democratic Alliance has complained to the German publication Der Spiegel over an article it believes is inflammatory and could scare visitors away from South Africa."Der Spiegel is a prominent and well-regarded newspaper, and the articles that it has published could well scare off tourists, frighten investors, and damage South Africa's efforts to show that it is a stable democracy," said the opposition party on Sunday.
It is reacting to a February article titled "The army stands by", and says the DA, "it builds a picture of a country that is on the verge of civil war".
The article starts by contrasting the fires in the Western Cape with pre-election tension heating up and ends dramatically with references to the army standing by ready to step in if needed during the election.
The DA said it doesn't believe in minimizing problems of electoral violence and intimidation, and it also takes seriously the corruption charges against ANC president Jacob Zuma, discussed in the article.
"But anyone living in South Africa will know that the country is not on the brink of civil war and that the electoral process has for the most part been smooth," it said.
"Yet Germans who have not been to South Africa do not have any context within which to place these articles, and are going to be left with the impression that South Africa is just another African country on the point of implosion."
"South Africa is a magnificent, great country, with enormous potential. The DA will not let this potential be compromised by opportunistic reporting apparently aimed at selling newspapers rather than reporting objectively."
Source : Sapa /jog/hr
Date : 15 Mar 2009 16:20
