Johannesburg - The Film and Publications Board (FPB) says it has approached Twitter to have it remove the sex tape of Free State Legislature Speaker Zanele Sifuba.
They have given Twitter until midnight on Thursday to remove the video, or else they would refer the matter to the Enforcement Committee, which is chaired by Retired Judge Thokozile Masipa.
Masipa would be tasked with issuing penalties and/or fines accordingly.
The FPB said the dissemination of the explicit video was harmful to children.
Sifuba’s sex tape was leaked on social media platforms this week, allegedly, in an extortion attempt.
It is alleged that R300 000 was demanded from the ANC politician.
According to reports, Sifuba has since laid criminal charges.
In a statement, the FPB said the distribution of the explicit material on a freely accessible platform like Twitter exposed children to age-inappropriate material which is prohibited by the FPB Act.
“Because of the risk the material or video poses to children in terms of age-inappropriate content, FPB has contacted Twitter to urgently take-down the video from its platform by the 10th of November 2022, failure to which the FPB will apply the remedies provided to it by the Act, including referring the matter to the recently appointed Enforcement Committee, chaired by Masipa for penalties and or fines,” said the FPB.
It has called on the sharing of the sex video to be stopped.
It warned that distributing pictures and the video was against the law, and called on caregivers to be vigilant to ensure children in their care were not exposed to explicit material.
The FPB’s interim chief executive Dr Mashilo Boloka said the distribution of explicit material underlined the continuing unprecedented trend of online harms directed at children and other vulnerable groups, including women and people with disabilities.
“As the FPB, we are gearing ourselves up to aggressively deal with these online harms so that we have a safer online environment for the entire South African public.
“Being online is a human right issue which every South African should enjoy whether for social, economic, or educational purpose”.
Earlier reports said the sharing of revenge porn, according the Cybercrimes Act, could land those distributing such material in prison for four years or be handed a R300 000 fine if the victim could be identified.
The FPB said those distributing harmful material could be reported via email to [email protected]
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