Moerane Commission: 'Negative reporting fuels political tension'

The South African Local Government Association has told the commission media reports are a contributing factor to the increasing number of political protests in KwaZulu-Natal and the country as a whole. 

SALGA's Lance Joel has told the commission that violent protests have been on the rise since the dawn of democracy and are not unique to KZN although the province is among the most volatile. 

ALSO READ: Moerane Commission hears of unsolved murders dating back six years

He feels the media's position to always run with negative stories has to be looked at.

"So the protests - or the challenges that have been experienced in our municipalities - have become newsworthy items and we barely open up the front page of the newspaper or drive past a lamp post in our streets where there is a positive story being told. 

"The media is very quick to talk about the negative things and as a consequence, also steering up the protests that we find in our municipalities," he said. 

The Moerane Commission is probing political violence in KZN.

For more on this and other developing stories, here's your latest Newswatch bulletin.