Seen by many as one of South Africa’s foremost satirists and commentators, Jonathan Shapiro, AKA Zapiro, has commented on the tightly prescriptive nature of the new Press Code, effective since the 15th of October.
Shapiro said: “I would like to see an amendment [to the press code] soon. I’m certainly not the only one who will be affected — those who do songs, broadcasts, people doing cartoons, columnists and people who write profiles could be seen to contravene a number of clauses here. We don’t want everything to get to the Constitutional Court.
“My overall sense of the code is that it is too prescriptive and is not open to the wild and woolly nature of satire.”
– ‘Zapiro Slams New Press Code’ in the Mail and Guardian
For now, as we watch the drama unfold in the courts as Jacob Zuma takes on Zapiro for the infamous Lady Justice cartoon of 2008, we’ll read our Zapiro annuals again. My personal favourite is still Pirates of the Polokwane. Which is yours?
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