A man who would only identify himself as a
hitchhiker from New York sits on a street corner, Saturday, April 22, 2006, in
the Georgetown section of Washington. The man said lots of people take a look at
his sign referring to Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie and some leave spare change.
(AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa - Namibian authorities are clamping down on
journalists trying to follow Brad Pitt, pregnant Angelina Jolie and her two
adopted children after the couple asked for some privacy, according to a
newspaper report Sunday.
South Africa's Sunday Times said the couple's
security chief gave a local journalist a statement asking that they be left
alone.
"We love Africa and to be here in Namibia with our family is very special for
us," the statement said. "To the local people who have been so kind and
gracious, thank you for making us feel at home.
"As for the press, we kindly ask for privacy so that we can enjoy this
beautiful country with our children."
The statement was signed by both Jolie and Pitt.
The Sunday Times said its own photographer and three French photographers
were ordered to leave Namibia or face arrest. Journalists require accreditation
to work in the country.
Namibian Prime Minister Nahas Angula defended the move, saying the couple
should be left alone.
"This lady is expecting," he told the Sunday Times. "You guys are harassing
her. Why don't you allow her some privacy? Harassment is not allowed in Namibia.
"If a person says they don't want to be photographed then, of course, that
person deserves protection."
The couple and their entourage are staying at the luxury Burning Shores
resort hotel between the scenic old colonial German town of Swakopmond and the
resort of Walvis Bay, in an area where the desert sand dunes descend
spectacularly to the sea.
Despite tight security, photographers have managed to snap images of
Hollywood's hottest couple.
The Sunday Times said Jolie and Pitt were spotted last week at a local
Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet with her children, Maddox and Zahara, and then
went to a pet store to buy a turtle.
They also visited a jewelry shop.
A Namibian official said last week that Jolie might have Pitt's baby in the
southern African nation.
Jolie, who starred with Pitt in the movie "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," was first in
Namibia when filming the movie "Beyond Borders" in 2002.
Namibia, rich in diamonds and strategic metals and home to 1.8 million
people, gained independence from neighboring South Africa after a 23-year war in
1990 and has since been ruled by a democratically elected government.
The country is a popular tourist destination for South Africans for its
brilliant scenery and teeming wildlife.