As reports surface of a growing pornography addiction problem in South Africa, a pay-TV boss said he is proud to bring hardcore porn to SA television for the first time and plans to introduce more in 2014.
Referring to the controversial launch of 3 porn channels by StarSat (formerly TopTV) on December 1, Eddie Mbalo, the interim CEO of On Digital Media, said they aim to broadcast more porn next year, including pornography coming from Africa.
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Mbalo says the erotic sex channels will “in the long run promote healthy relationships, positive images of sexuality, and of women in particular,” for South Africa.
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Mbalo’s claims are at odds with a recent Times Live report that notes that South African children as young as 15 are seeking professional help because of porn addiction and addicts are spending millions to feed their shameful habits.
Therapists and counsellors dealing with addictions are concerned that should it be left untreated, porn addiction could lead individuals to cause harm to themselves and others.
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Family Policy Institute director Errol Naidoo has called for a renewed nationwide boycott in of On Digital Media and StarSat “with immediate effect”, saying South Africans need to “take a bold and uncompromising stand against the flood of filth infiltrating our nation”.
“Research consistently shows that regular porn consumption leads to addictions and often fuels sexual crimes against women and children.” According to Naidoo “our government is making it easier for children to be exposed to hardcore pornography on the internet and TV”.
He says people supporting ODM and StarSat are contributing to pornography on South African television.
He urges people to sign a Public Petition calling for StarSat’s porn programmes to be stopped. The petition will be sent to StarSat management.
The Justice Alliance of South Africa (Jasa) which is also opposed to ODM and StarSat’s porn broadcast recently brought a court application against ODM, Icasa, and the Minister of Communications. The case will be heard early in 2014. A group of teenagers also opposed to porn, has joined the case.
Pathetic!
Healthy relationships?
“Mbalo says the erotic sex channels will “in the long run promote healthy relationships, positive images of sexuality, and of women in particular,” for South Africa. ”
As a former porn addict, I can relate to the following reply:
“Research consistently shows that regular porn consumption leads to addictions and often fuels sexual crimes against women and children.” According to Naidoo “our government is making it easier for children to be exposed to hardcore pornography on the internet and TV”.
I used to watch porn quite a lot, and got addicted to it. I couldn’t go a day without viewing some kind of “erotic” picture or video. It started when I was about 15/16, when I bought “men’s interest” books (eg GQ, FHM etc), then when I was about 21 I started buying “hardcore” porn like the hustler etc. It took many years, long talks with God, discussions with pastors, intercessors, cell group members and Godly friends, a lot of Bible study, more prayer, and a commitment to follow Jesus, to break this filthy habit I had.
I compare porn addictionm to smoking, or alcohol abuse. No-one starts smoking 90 cigarettes a day, you start smoking one or two at a party / school / after work, then gradually work up to a packet, and get to a “comfortable” level, be it 10 or 90 cigarettes a day (lighting the next one with the butt of the old one). Somewhere, sometime, the normal tobacco doesn’t “do it” for you anymore, and you turn to other “recreational” drugs.
No-one starts off drinking 2 bottles of whiskey etc. a day. “Just one” after work to de-stress turns into “a few” …… etc, ending up with a person going on a bender every day, unable to go to work unless you’ve got a “stiff one” or two or three below your belt.
Not ALL people go all the way to the bottom of the pit, but I, for one, had quite a good look at the mud that is there. My alcohol problem is gone completely, and my porn addiction too. Not because I did it, it was Divine intervention that got me out of it. BUT if I wasn’t willing to start, it wouldn’t have gone as far as it did.
So, I want to say to Eddie Mbalo: “Wake up and smell the coffee,” distributing this smut will rather WRECK relationships (I speak out of a LOT of personal experience, I’m still struggling to maintain a healthy one at age 43,) and cause men to see women as mere sex objects, and due to this will cause men to think it is OK to degrade and rape women, because the images portray women as possessions, not persons.
Praise God for your honesty and transparency Jaco! There should be more men like you who would speak boldly and courageously against pornography. If you look at Eddie Mbalo’s smiling face, you would think him to be a good clean family man with a couple of children. I wonder how he would feel if he found his children watching porn on TV and then become addicted to that filth. How would he feel if his daughters were raped or his sons became rapists because porn will fuel even more evil in this society. He obviously feels very proud that he is going be the first of many to go ahead with hardcore porn 0n TV. What motivates a man of his stature as the interim CEO of On Digital Media to stoop so low as to encourage this sort of filth into our already “rape capital of the world” Satan comes as an angel of light. That smile would fool anybody!