The ANC has fought for human dignity, freedom of expression, and by extension, media freedom.

The drafters of our constitution who were on the negotiating table representing the views of the ANC ensured that these rights were enshrined in our constitution.

In 1994, the then ANC president, Nelson Mandela, in an address to the International Press Institute, said: "Truth can be arrived at only through the untrammelled contest between and among competing opinions, in which as many viewpoints as possible are given a fair and equal hearing.

"Freedom of expression, of which press freedom is a crucial aspect, is among the core values of democracy... A critical, independent and investigative press is the lifeblood of any democracy. The press must be free from state interference. It must have sufficient independence from vested interests to be bold and enquiring without fear or favour. It must enjoy the protection of the constitution so that it can protect our rights as citizens.

"The tragic absence of diversity in the South African media has been a matter of grave concern to us over a number of years. South African media are still largely dominated by persons drawn almost exclusively from one racial group. While no one can object in principle to editors with such a profile, what is disturbing is the threat of one dimensionality this poses for the media.

"For the past 30 odd years South Africa has sorely needed bold, probing and iconoclastic journalism. This is a tradition that has been pioneered by the handful of courageous new publications that constitute the alternative press.

"Founded at a time of severe repression, when the proprietors of the mainstream newspapers preferred to accept a shameful regime of rigorous self-censorship rather than stand up to a repressive government, it was these newspapers that kept the flag of press freedom aloft."

The ANC believes in independent regulation.

This may differ with the interpretation that is commonly assigned to our proposal, which has been misrepresented as meaning state or government regulation.

We want to be clear that we are advocating independent regulation of the media unencumbered by commercial or party political interests.

The ANC resolution states that any mechanism should be independent of commercial and party-political interests, should act without fear, favour and prejudice, should be empowered to impose appropriate sanctions, and there must not be pre-publication censorship. It supports the very process the PFC is engaged in.

Freedom of expression has the same and equal value as human dignity and equality.

In deliberating over these matters, the PFC will need to revisit what the first president of the Constitutional Court, Justice Arthur Chaskalson, said in the case of S v Makwanyane & another 1995 (3) SA 391: "The rights of life and dignity are the most important of all human rights, and the source of all other personal rights in Chapter Three. By committing ourselves to a society founded on the recognition of human rights, we are required to value these two rights above all others."

This is further reinforced by Kate O'Regan, a former Constitutional Court judge, who also said, in the case of NM v Smith: "Freedom of expression... is indispensable, not only because it makes democracy possible but also because of its importance to the development of individuals, for it enables them to form and share opinions and thus enhances human dignity and autonomy.

"Recognising the role of freedom of expression in asserting the moral autonomy of individuals demonstrates the links between freedom of expression and other constitutional rights, such as human dignity, privacy and freedom."

The ANC is therefore saying this process and the parliamentary inquiry we envisage should reinforce the Constitution Act (1996). It should review the existing media accountability mechanisms and investigate the establishment of a media appeals tribunal. Such a review must balance the rights to dignity, freedom of expression and freedom of the media.

The proposed establishment of a media appeals tribunal will strengthen and complement the existing self-regulatory system.

The SA regulatory system for print media suffers from these weaknesses:

l Continuously shabby journalism.

l Declining journalism standards.

l Inaccurate, unfair and irresponsible reporting.

l Inadequate powers of the Press Ombudsman to deter and discourage this practice.

l Continuous non-compliance and adherence to the existing Press Code.

l Inadequate Press Code in respect of being unaligned to the constitution and internationally agreed protocols.

l An ineffective self-regulatory system.

l A non-independent appeal mechanism.

l Lack of accountability.

The mechanism we seek must encourage professionalism in journalism, discourage irresponsible reporting and strengthen our democracy.

We look forward to your review report.

We know your brief is broad, and will look holistically at how to ensure any media accountability mechanisms act and are perceived to act independently of their sponsors, powerful commercial and other interests, political parties and government, and are seen to be effective in addressing breaches of agreed-upon standards and contribute towards raising the standards they uphold.

l This is an edited version of Mantashe's presentation to the PFC on the ANC's behalf.

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