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09 October 2019 | Story Ruan Bruwer | Photo Varsity Sports
Lefebere and Khanyisa
Lefébre Rademan (left) and Khanyisa Chawane before the start of the Varsity Netball clash. Rademan was named the Player of the Tournament, a reward Chawane received last year.
For the sixth time in the seven years of the competition, the best player in the Varsity Netball tournament hails from the University of the Free State (UFS).

Lefébre Rademan, captain of the Kovsie netball team who ended third in Varsity Netball, was named as the Player of the Tournament and the Players’ Player of the Tournament on Monday night (7 October). Previous UFS recipients of the award are Ané Bester (2013), Karla Pretorius (in 2014 and 2015), Khomotso Mamburu (2016), and Khanyisa Chawane (2018).

Rademan shot 176 goals from 214 attempts for a goal average of 82%. In both the Premier League and National Championship, she received the prize for the best shooter this year.

The news comes shortly after the announcement that a UFS teammate has secured a contract to play overseas next year. Khanyisa Chawane, who impressed immensely as a member of the Proteas at this year’s World Cup, will represent Bath in Europe’s Superleague. The 23-year-old Chawane also received an offer to play in the Australian league, but the one in England suited her better.

She will return to Bloemfontein midway through the year and will still be available for the Kovsie netball team, as she will continue her studies. The talented mid-courter follows in the footsteps of Pretorius, who also spent a season with Bath in 2016.

“I am really thrilled to have signed with Bath. There is no doubt that I’m going to come out a better player; I’m grateful to have been scouted and given this opportunity to play for such a big team. It still brings tears to my eyes when I think about it.”

“My goal has always been to play abroad and to challenge myself. I always strive to better myself and give my best on and off court,” Chawane said about the opportunity next year.

News Archive

There’s more to media freedom than the Secrecy Bill
2012-05-04

4 May 2012

 “Media freedom is a universal human right. It cannot be abolished, but it should be managed.” The freedom of the media is protected by numerous formal documents, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the South African Constitution, and is commemorated annually with the celebration of World Press Freedom Day.

 “As long as those in power have something to hide, media freedom will be under threat. This is a war that takes place on many fronts,” says Ms Willemien Marais, a journalism lecturer at the Department of Communication Science at the University of the Free State (UFS).

“On the one hand we have to take a stand against institutional threats such as the proposed Protection of State Information Bill. This is diametrically opposed to everything that media freedom and freedom of expression encapsulates.

“But on the other hand we also need to educate and transform our society. It is not only up to journalists to defend media freedom. Newspaper reports on the public hearings on this Bill earlier this year proved that ignorance concerning media freedom is a big threat. The lack of resistance against the Secrecy Bill from the general population clearly illustrates that people aren’t aware of what they are about to lose.”

 Ms Marais says the rise of social media and the accompanying awareness of individual freedom of expression have paved the way for more people to exercise this right. “The role of social media in the Arab Spring has been highlighted numerous times. The power of social media is undeniable – but alas, so is the lack of access to especially social media. We can only increase media literacy if we increase people’s access to the media – new and traditional.”

A high level of media literacy is also vital following last month’s recommendation by the Press Freedom Commission of a system of independent co-regulation for South Africa’s print media. This system proposes replacing government regulation with a panel consisting of representatives from the print industry as well as members of the general public. “It is abundantly clear that this system can only work if those members of the general public are media literate and understand the role of media freedom in protecting democracy.”

“The media is not a sentient being – it consists of and is run by people, and human beings are fallible. Protecting media freedom does not only mean fighting institutional threats. It also means increasing media literacy by educating people. And it means owning up to your mistakes, and correcting it.” 

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