Praktiseer, South Africa — 19 November 2025

A magistrates’ court in Praktiseer has set aside a protection order against freelance journalist Thomo Nkgadima, in a ruling hailed by the Campaign for Free Expression (CFE) as a critical victory for press freedom and a warning against the misuse of harassment laws to silence investigative reporting.

The court’s decision reaffirms that South Africa’s Protection from Harassment Act cannot be weaponised to obstruct legitimate newsgathering or shield public officials from scrutiny.

CFE, which supported Nkgadima throughout the legal proceedings, said the case underscores a growing pattern of legal intimidation targeting journalists — particularly freelancers working in rural municipalities.

“Thomo’s experience is not an aberration,” said Nicole Fritz, Executive Director of CFE. “It is part of a broader trend in which protection orders, designed primarily for victims of domestic violence, are being misused to gag journalists.”

Nkgadima has faced repeated attempts to suppress his reporting on alleged corruption and maladministration in the Fetakgomo Tubatse municipality.

In December 2023, he was arrested while documenting irregular electricity connections linked to a property owned by the local mayor.

He spent five days in police custody over the Christmas period, denied bail until 29 December, and released only after family members contributed to his legal costs. The criminal charges were dismissed in May 2024 due to a lack of evidence.

Early this year, Nkgadima was again targeted — this time through a protection order obtained while he was reporting on the construction of a local hospital. He was arrested for allegedly breaching the order, though the charge was swiftly withdrawn.

“This ruling is a relief for Thomo, but it should alarm all of us,” Fritz said. “Even with this victory, there has been no small cost to Mr Nkgadima.”

Nkgadima said the ordeal has damaged his professional prospects and personal livelihood. “Many online publications are now reluctant to use my writing, and my farming project has suffered, resulting in a loss of side income,” he said.

CFE is preparing to intervene in further court processes aimed at narrowing the legal definition of ‘harassment’ to prevent retaliatory claims against journalists, researchers, and media practitioners.

“We will be asking the courts to draw a clear line: the law must protect genuine victims of harassment, but it must not be twisted into a mechanism to muzzle investigative journalists,” Fritz said.

“If public officials and private actors can use the Act to shut down critical reporting, then we risk creating a climate in which corruption thrives because scrutiny becomes punishable.”

CFE has called on magistrates, police, and public officials to exercise vigilance when handling harassment applications involving journalists, warning against SLAPP-style tactics — strategic lawsuits against public participation — that threaten constitutionally protected work.

(C) TPA2025