JMS alumnus Lindile Mpanza was one of the winners at the CNN MultiChoice African Journalists Awards, held in Johannesburg recently.
She won best television feature for her piece entitled, 'Silence of the Innocents' which tells the story of young girls who are abducted, raped and forced into marriage in the Lusikisiki area of the Eastern Cape of South Africa.
"I'm very excited because it's a great achievement for me to have won such a prestigious award at the age of 25. I feel honoured for the acknowledgement. I'm proud to say Rhodes University was the stepping stone and foundation for my blossoming career," said Mapanza.
"When I first started working on the story, I had no idea what I was going to find because I was dealing with a community entrenched in tradition and mainly with men who do not want to talk about or be criticised for a cultural practice that has gone horribly wrong. It was a bit challenging, but I’m grateful to the young girls who were willing to talk about their experiences."
Mpanza graduated with a Bachelor of Journalism in 2008 and is employed as a producer on etv's '3rd Degree'.