Info Bill will impact on civil society
The following interview was published online by Greater Goods SA:
The Protection of Information Bill has filled kilometres of space in South African newspapers. But the debate surrounding the Bill is often presented as a tussle between government and the media. If the Bill is passed in its current form, however, there will be serious consequences for all of us who have an interest in what our government is doing. GreaterCapital researcher, Dylan Edwards, spoke to Murray Hunter, national coordinator of the Right2Know campaign about how the bill will affect civil society, and what you can do to help.
Dylan Edwards: Why are we still worrying about the Protection of Information Bill – hasn’t parliament changed the clauses that threatened our rights to access information?
Murray Hunter: It’s true that there has at last been some positive change on the Bill – after months of dithering in Parliament. For example, the Bill would no longer grant secrecy-making powers at every level of government by default – most of these bodies would have to opt-in.
But actually, the most draconian parts of the Secrecy Bill are still intact. The Bill promises to make secrets only in the interests of national security – but there’s still such a wide definition of national security that all sorts of information could be classified. The Bill also gives extraordinary powers to state security agencies to operate without public scrutiny – no matter if they’re acting in our interests or not. Mostly importantly, there’s no public interest defence in the Bill. No protection for ordinary members of the public, researchers, activists and journalists who expose a state secret, even when it’s patently the right thing to do. In short, the struggle on this Bill is still about protecting ordinary members of the public, and that struggle continues.
DE: Isn’t the Bill really about the tension between government and the media? What has it got to do with ordinary citizens?
MH: The truth is that the Secrecy Bill is much more than an attack on the media – although that’s part of the story. The free flow of information – not just through the media but directly between the government and its people – is at the heart of all struggles for social justice. I think that’s a big motivation for the resistance from community-based organisations whose primary concern is service delivery: the Secrecy Bill further undermines our struggles for access to information, which we need to hold our leaders to account.
Remember that the Bill won’t just prosecute journalists who go digging around in state secrets – it’ll prosecute any member of the public. But this is also about who controls government: particularly when it comes to shadowy organs of state security, there are massive parts of our state who are working under a veil of secrecy already. Increasingly we’re seeing reports that the intelligence sector is being used in power struggles within government and party politics.
The Secrecy Bill threatens to further protect the securocrats from public scrutiny, which is not only a concern for journalists, but for the people of South Africa.
DE: What can community based organisations and non profits do to help?
MH: Two words: Public pressure. The gains made so far have not been won in Parliament, but in the streets through public protest and popular education. You can add your organisation under the banner of the Right2Know campaign – we’re currently comprised of about 400 civil society organisations. As with every civil society initiative, our clout comes from having a broad base. Email your organisation’s endorsement to Tinashe at admin@r2k.org.za or fax it to 021 461 7213.
You can join our march in Johannesburg, from Wits Great Hall to Constitutional Hill, on Saturday 13 August. Community based organisations can set up a workshop for their members to raise awareness of access to information issues – get in touch with our organisers in the Western Cape, Gauteng, KZN or the Eastern Cape.
Source: Greater Goods SA
