Security bolstered for The Gathering media conference
BLF members were barred from entering the venue on Thursday after the group's leader claimed they'd bought tickets and simply wanted to enter into a peaceful discourse.
CAPE TOWN - Organisers of The Gathering Media Edition in Cape Town says security had to be bolstered following recent attacks on journalists.
Various speakers are on Thursday discussing issues affecting the media landscape.
WATCH: The Gathering: Media Edition
Black First Land First (BLF) members were barred from entering the venue after the group's leader, Andile Mngixitama claimed that they'd bought tickets and simply wanted to enter into a peaceful discourse.
Daily Maverick CEO Styli Charalambous says: “All that’s unfolded in the last couple of weeks with the court order against BLF. The security around this event, which is essentially a media conference with a lot of journalists, and a lot of journalists at the forefront of exposing the Gupta leaks, security was of the utmost importance for us.”
#DMNandosGathering Veteran journalist Joe Thloloe: ANC is inadvertently encouraging BLF's behaviour https://t.co/L5IjN0ypZg pic.twitter.com/eANpNabxei
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) August 3, 2017
Mngxitama demanded his money back after being denied access into a private media gathering.
When Eyewitness News approached Mngxitama for comment, he said that he would only speak as the reporter at the event is black, adding he would not hurt her.
Mngxitama and his group were denied access to the event and have since left the venue.
The South African National Editor's Forum has approached a court to take action against Mngxitama for breaching a court order barring him from intimidating journalists.
#NandosDMGathering Next panel: Jackson Mthembu, Phumzile van Damme, & Mbuyiseni Ndlozi to discuss "Hijacking Media for Politcal Gain." MM pic.twitter.com/vvoSSfmOGb
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) August 3, 2017
#NandosDMgathering Heywood: Appeal to the media to look deeper. Things are not getting better, it's getting significantly worse. MM
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) August 3, 2017
GALLERY: The Gathering