The Right2Know Campaign called on all freedom-loving South Africans and democrats across the world to petition President Zuma to stop the Secrecy Act and either return the Bill to Parliament for redrafting, or send it directly to the Constitutional Court for review.

For information about the vigil contact  Joanne Adams, R2K KZN Organiser, on 083 4981583 or email: r2kkzn1@gmail.com.

For media comment contact  Desmond D’Sa, R2K KZN spokesperson, on 083 982 6939.

From there the so-called Secrecy Bill will land on President Jacob Zuma’s desk to be signed into law.

The bill has been in the making for years but remains controversial and contested.

Civil society groups and opposition parties have opposed the bill as the law could stifle media freedom by preventing the press form reporting on certain issues.

The Info Bill could also result in the prosecution of whistleblowers.

The campaign’s Murray Hunter said the President could receive the bill as early as next week.

“I think he’s heard the concerns members of the public have. Members of the public can also petition on our website of they have concerns about the constitutionality of the bill as well.”

But critics have called on the President to refer the matter to the Constitutional Court.

If Zuma fails to hand the proposed law to the top court, groups have vowed to legally challenge the bill themselves.

Meanwhile, the South African Press Council used World Press Freedom Day on Friday last week to remind the public of its right to information.

Several demonstrations took place across the country to commemorate the day.

The council also raised its concerns about the state of the press in the country.

The council’s Raymond Louw said the media has a duty to fulfill in society.

Critics of the bill believe it would allow corruption to flourish as whistleblowers could face imprisonment.

This article was written by Alex Eliseev and appeared on Eyewitness News on 9 May 2013.

YOU can help us build a partial list, though. If you have any knowledge of a building that has been identified as a National Key Point, please submit the information below. We are looking for information that is as specific and accurate as possible, with as much verifiable evidence as you can provide! (Also see our note below, “How can I identify a National Key Point?”)

First, please check the list that that has been compiled thus far to avoid double-entries:

Please circulate widely – help draw together a public list of National Key Points!

Note 1: Why do we need a list of National Key Points?

National Key Points are placed deemed to be so vital to national security (in terms of the apartheid-era National Key Points Act) that it is justifiable to restrict citizens’ rights to access information about these places, and prohibit the right to assemble or protest there. (Read more about how the National Key Points Act restricts the public’s right to know here.)

We need to have a list of National Key Points, because the Act could apply to just about any building or site, not just sensitive military bases – airports, petro-chemical refineries, public-broadcasting stations and even the president’s private residence are just a few of the places known to be National Key Points. Yet because the public doesn’t know conclusively which buildings are National Key Points, you could be breaking the law without even knowing it, by staging a protest at a National Key Point or by merely photographing it.

The public clearly has a right to know how this draconian law is being implemented – and it would not undermine national security if we did.

Note 2: How can I identify a National Key Point?

Even though SAPS has refused R2K’s request for a public list of National Key Points, many National Key Points are easily identified. For example, certain SABC stations have a sign at the entrance announcing that the site is a National Key Point (see above). Other institutions list their National Key Point status in annual reports or on their website. Other buildings only come to be known as National Key Points when authorities refuse to allow a protest there – this happened at the National Energy Regulator (NERSA) earlier this year.

If you suspect a building or institution has been declared a National Key Point, you can try simply searching in Google for “[building/institution]” AND “National Key Point” (keep the ” ” marks) and trawl through the results.

Writing in the Mail&Guardian, the journalist Phillip De Wet highlights some of the means by which National Key Points may be identified - and in doing so, identifies several National Key Points which should be added to this database.

According the letter in which the Ministry of Police refused to release a list of National Key Points (download here), places or areas which are National Key Points may include places:

(1) Banks;
(2) Munitions Industries;
(3) Petro Chemical Industries;
(4) Water Supply;
(5) Electricity;
(6) Communications;
(7) Transport Air;
(8) Government Institutions;
(9) Data Processing;
(10) Research; or
(11) Technology Information Systems

The so-called Secrecy Bill recently got passed in Parliament and is one step closer from being signed into law.

The proposed law has been in the making for several years now.

Civil society groups and opposition parties have opposed the bill as the law could stifle media freedom by preventing the press form reporting on certain issues.

The Info Bill could also result in the prosecution of whistleblowers.

Right2Know’s Murray Hunter said, “The bill will be translated this week and passed to the president next.”

If Zuma signs the bill, then it will become law.

But critics have called on the president to refer the matter to the Constitutional Court.

If Zuma fails to hand the proposed law to the top court, groups have vowed to legally challenge the bill themselves.

This article was written by Alex Eliseev and appeared on Eyewitness News on 8 May 2013.

PRESIDENT ZUMA DO THE RIGHT THING! DON’T SIGN THE SECRECY BILL INTO LAW!

SEND IT BACK TO PARLIAMENT OR TO THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT!

 Date: Wednesday 7 May 2013
Time: 12h30 – 14h00
Venue: Emfuleni Municipality (Klasie Havenga Street, Frikkie Meyer Boulevard, Vanderbijlpark)

The Secrecy Bill, which has now passed both Houses of Parliament and will soon be sent to president Zuma for his signature, remains a clear threat to South Africa’s right to know. As part of R2K’s ongoing activities around the Bill, affiliated community organisations in the Vaal will participate in a picket at the Emfuleni Municipality.

In the past two years R2K has expanded its work into many grassroots communities, conducting public activities and popular education on the four legs of our Campaign (Access to Information, Media Diversity, Stop the Secrecy Bill and Justice for Whistleblowers). As such, these communities are all too well aware that the final version of the Secrecy Bill amongst other things, criminalises the public for possessing information that has already been leaked, protects apartheid-era secrets and still contains broad definitions of national security that will in all likelihood be used to suppress legitimate disclosures in the public interest. If President Zuma signs in into law, it will affect every community’s right to access and make known crucial information from government that impacts on residents lives.

For more information contact R2K Gauteng Organiser, Bongani Xezwi on 0710432221

FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHT2KNOW! STOP THE SECRECY BILL FROM BECOMING LAW!

The SABC protest –  a street carnival & protest party highlighting the suspecion that the SABC building is a National Key Point – will take place at the SABC on the corner of Artillery Road & Canary Street, Auckland PArk, Johannesburg from 12h00 to 16h00.

The festival atmosphere will include a youth theatre group staging their drama called “Press and media expression” as well as a National Key Point photo booth live-tweeting pictures of R2Kers from in front of the SABC and various other artists.

The picket at MTN and VODACOM regional offices will mark the first public demonstration against the high cost of mobile communication upheld by the virtual duopoly fo these two corporations. Protesters will gather on the corner of Century Bulivard and Heron Street in Century City, Cape Town at 13h00.

In Durban the Right2Know will be highlighting opposition to the passing of the Secrecy Bill at the Durban City Hall from 10h00 to 12h00. The Secrecy Bill remains a threat to journalists, whistleblowers and activists across south Africa.

• More information about the SABC Street Party here.
• More information about the R2K’s campaign for the right to Communicate here.
• More information about R2K’s opposition to the Secrecy Bill and our petition to calling on President Zuma not to sign the Bill here.

Most agree that while the bill that was passed last week was much improved from the first few draconian versions of the bill, it still leaves much to be desired in terms of media freedom and what constitutes public interest.

“The limited protection the bill offers journalists and whistle-blowers will no doubt result in an unacceptable environment of secrecy, fear and intimidation. This does not bode well for responsible journalism in South Africa, for the livelihood of those pursuing honest careers in what should be free media, or for the South African public,” says South Africa Freelancers Association (Safrea) chair, Helen Ueckermann.

She said the bill needs to be “weighed and tested against the South African constitution”. Safrea believes this kind of legislation undermines and erodes the sacrifices endured during the Struggle, and all that it stood for. Passing the bill makes a mockery of the constitutional safeguards on free speech.

“The media’s role as watchdog, and its responsibility towards the public to report on classified information exposing corruption or criminal activity, will be severely hampered with the passing of the bill,” says Ueckermann.

Civil society campaigners, the Right 2 Know (R2K) campaign says it remains committed to challenging the bill if it becomes law.

“But on top of that, there is so much more to be done to tackle threats to the free flow of information – from the draconian National Key Points Act, the climate of intimidation facing our whistleblowers, to the rampant profiteering from cell-phone companies that has put a high price on freedom of expression,” R2K said in a statement.

It has launched a petition campaign to ask President Jacob Zuma NOT to sign the bill into an Act.

The South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) said the bill still has the potential to be “used as an instrument of secrecy in a democracy that can only thrive in a climate of openness”.

It said President Jacob Zuma has the option to refer the bill to the Constitutional Court. “That is an opportunity he must avail himself of. Members of parliament, too, can send the legislation for constitutional review before it becomes law,” Sanef said.

“We have already seen how a process of public engagement has improved the Bill .A full review by the highest court in the land would significantly advance that process, and help to ensure that remaining concerns about its constitutionality are fully addressed.”

In the meantime, the Democratic Alliance is calling for a recount after ANC chief whip Mathole Motshekga admitted there was a “technical glitch” that saw him vote ‘no’ against the passing of the bill in the national assembly. That wasn’t the only hitch. DA chief whip Watty Watson said former DA MP Gareth Morgan was registered as having voted against the bill. He was not in the National Assembly and is no longer an MP. DA MP Hendrik Schmidt voted against but his vote was not recorded; and five MPs who were not in parliament were recorded as voting against the bill.

“If this is indeed the case, then there is the potential that other votes could have been recorded incorrectly,” Watson said.

“On a bill as controversial as this, and which has a high likelihood of ending up in the Constitutional Court, it is essential that Parliament is not embarrassed for its inability to do its job correctly. I am confident that Dr Motshekga, who was quick to point out that his vote against this unconstitutional piece of legislation was due to a ‘glitch’ will support this request and for an opportunity to vote again.”

The ANC is not convinced and has accused the DA of “clutching at straws”. In a statement issued by Motshekga’s office, his spokesman Moloto Mothapo said the DA was “resorting to some futile filibustering expedition with a hope to frustrate a democratic decision of the National Assembly. It is naïve to hope to quash a democratic process on technicalities”.

He said as the majority party, the ANC was “not losing any sleep regarding the threat to challenge the constitutionality of this Bill in the Constitutional Court”.

The Helen Suzman Foundation said it all.

This article was written by Glenda Nevill and appeared on The Media Online on 30 April 2013.

The Right2Know Campaign calls on all freedom-loving South Africans and democrats across the world to contact President Zuma and appeal to him to stop the Secrecy Act and either return the Bill to Parliament for redrafting, or send it directly to the Constitutional Court for review.

You can send the following email to the President at presidentrsa@po.gov.za and the President’s Spokesperson at macmaharaj@icloud.com. Be sure to copy in admin@r2k.org.za.

“Dear President Zuma,

I am writing to you to call on you to not sign the Secrecy Bill (the Protection of State Information Bill) into law. I call on you to either return the Bill to Parliament for redrafting, or send it directly to the Constitutional Court for review. The reasons for my objection to the Bill are listed below – these are concerns I share with thousands of other people who have united to form the Right2Know Campaign:

• We demand a just and limited classification law that promotes our Constitutional rights. The current Secrecy Bill undermines our freedom of expression and right to access information guaranteed in the Constitution.
• We demand a full Public Interest Defence. The current Secrecy Bill only has narrow protection for whistleblowers and public advocates that excludes a range of matters in the public interest like shady tendering practices or improper appointments within key state agencies.
• We demand full whistleblower protection. Under the current Secrecy Bill a whistleblower, journalist or activist who discloses a classified record with the purpose of revealing corruption or other criminal activity may be prosecuted under the “espionage” and other offences not covered by the proposed Public Interest Defence.
• Don’t criminalise the public as spies. In the current Secrecy Bill people can be charged with “espionage”, “receiving state information unlawfully” (to benefit a foreign state), and “hostile activity” without proof that the accused intended to benefit a foreign state or hostile group or prejudice the national security; only that the accused knew or “ought reasonably to have known” that this would be a “direct or indirect” result.
• Limit the Bill to to the security agencies. The current Secrecy Bill still gives powers of the Minister of State Security to give classification powers to other state bodies (and junior officials) without adequate public consultation.
• Include a Public Domain Defence. The current Secrecy Bill effectively criminalising the population at large. When classified information becomes public it is no longer a secret. Rather than holding those responsible for keeping secrets accountable, the current Bill punishes anyone who accesses information once it has been leaked into the public domain.
• Reduce draconian sentences. The current Secrecy Bill still contains draconian sentences of up to 25 years in jail. These are out of line with international practice and will have a chilling effect on anyone in possession of information in the public interest.
• Don’t undermine the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA). The procedure in the current Bill permitting applications for the declassification of classified information is in conflict with the PAIA – despite commitments from Parliament to the contrary.
• Demand an independent review panel. The body established to review classification (a Classification Review Panel) is not sufficiently independent and the simple possession of classified information appears to be illegal even pending a request for declassification and access.
• Let the Apartheid truth be told! Information that has been made secret in terms of old and potentially unconstitutional laws and policies will remain classified under the current Secrecy Bill pending a review for which no time limit is set. This includes information classified under the apartheid-era Protection of Information Act of 1982 and the government policy adopted in 1996, the Minimum Information Security Standards.
• Defend our democracy! If passed the Bill would add to the general trend towards secrecy, fear and intimidation that is growing in South Africa today.

We call on you to apply your mind and reject the Secrecy Bill (Protection of State Information Bill) and uphold the values of openness and transparency that you and others have fought for in the past.

Sincerely,

[Your name]”

The official opposition made its request after ANC chief whip Mathole Motshekga blamed a “technical glitch” for being recorded as having voted against the controversial legislation.

Parliament passed the bill last week by 190 votes against 74 – with one abstention and 60 MPs absent.

Moloto Mothapo, spokesman for the ANC parliamentary caucus, on Sunday dismissed the DA’s request outright, saying the official opposition sought to use the glitch to cast aspersions on the entire voting process for political reasons.

“The DA seeks to use the technical glitch around ANC Chief Whip Dr Motshekga’s vote, which the system erroneously captured as ‘No’ even though he pressed otherwise, to suggest that the entire system is dysfunctional and all votes were incorrectly captured.

“This is an act of desperation and posturing. Seemingly the DA is clutching at straws and the party is resorting to some futile filibustering expedition with a hope to frustrate a democratic decision of the National Assembly,” said Mothapo.

Before ANC MPs could even finish celebrating their overwhelming victory, opposition MPs quickly pointed out the irony that Motshekga – who once accused critics of the bill of “stupid liberal snobbery” – had in fact voted against the legislation he had fought so hard for.

This revelation threatened to embarrass not only Motshekga but the ANC.

The ANC chief whip later issued a statement, through Mothapo, saying owing to a technical problem with the voting machines, “the system erroneously recorded” him as having voted against it.

The bill, which awaits President Jacob Zuma’s signature before being passed into a law, has already sparked a war of words between the ANC and the DA.

DA chief whip Watty Watson has written to National Assembly Speaker Max Sisulu asking him to schedule another vote.

“According to the ANC Chief Whip, Mathole Motshekga, the voting system contained technical faults, which apparently resulted in his vote being recorded incorrectly,” said Watson. “If this is indeed the case, then there is the potential that other votes could have been recorded incorrectly.

“On a bill as controversial as this, and which has a high likelihood of ending up in the Constitutional Court, it is essential that Parliament is not embarrassed for its inability to do its job correctly,” said Watson.

He was “confident” that Motshekga would support the request and seize the opportunity to vote again, Watson said.

“For his vote to be changed behind closed doors will create unnecessary suspicion to the parliamentary process which must at all times be open.

“The Speaker must ensure that the integrity of Parliament is maintained. A re-vote is the only transparent way to do this,” said Watson.

Mothapo denied Watson’s assertions, accusing the DA of a fishing expedition following an electoral defeat in the National Assembly.

Mothapo said minor technical glitches do happen sometimes, “despite Parliament’s best intention to ensure 100 percent trouble-free voting sessions”.

“Despite DA parliamentary leaders claiming the entire opposition is united on this bill, the voting statistics reflects that over 60 opposition MPs failed to pitch for this crucial vote. This hardly augurs well for a united opposition the DA usually propagates,” said Mothapo.

Opponents of the bill have argued that it would undermine transparency and accountability in a country where senior government officials and politicians are often implicated in corruption and abuse of taxpayers’ money. They have called on Zuma to at least send it to the Constitutional Court for review before he finalises it. Pressure group, the Right2Know, has threatened to take the government to the Constitutional Court to push for the inclusion of certain clauses.

This article was written by Babalo Ndenze and appeared on IOL News on 29 April 2013.

In celebration of World Press Freedom Day, and to highlight our concerns surrounding the abuse of the National Key Points Act, the Right2Know Campaign will hold a protest party & street carnival at the SABC (a national key point) on 03 May 2013.

The 3^rd of May is recognised around the world as World Press Freedom Day, a day to reflect on our right to open access to information – our right to know.

On this World Press Freedom Day the Right2Know Campaign will highlight a tactic continually used by the SAPS and the Minister of Police to deny citizen’s of their right to know, an infringement on their basic human rights: the abuse of the National Key Points Act. Currently the National Key Points Act is being used to make a mockery of the right of access to information, and perpetuates the shroud of secrecy over information that is vital to the public interest.

The National Key Points Act is a draconian and obscure piece of apartheid-era legislation which remains on our statute books, and gives the head of the SAPS the power to declare any place a ‘national key point’ if it is deemed important to national security. Any site can be named a key point, from our airports and factories to our power stations and presidential residences – yet the public doesn’t even know which buildings now fall under the Act.

On 4 October 2012, according to the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA), the Right2Know Campaign launched a request for the Minister of Police to release the full list of National Key Points. The police refused this request and we appealed. After the police missed the legal deadline to respond to our appeal, we granted them a 30-day extension, which the Minister missed also. Eventually, on 7 March 2013 the Minister, Dr Siyabonga Cwele, upheld the decision to refuse to release the list of National Key Points.

We find the Minister’s reasons for refusing to release the list unacceptable and illogical.

Some examples of how the National Key Points Act is used to prevent your right to know:

• In the midst of the Nkandla-gate scandal, the President’s Nkandla property was conveniently declared a national key point, preventing those investigating the story from accessing relevant information which would be in the public interest
• Private-sector players in the petrochemical industry have attempted to use the Act to prevent communities in South Durban from gathering information on their environmental impact
• Citizen’s have been denied their right to assemble at certain places on the grounds that they wish to gather at a ‘national key point’, infringing on their constitutionally enshrined right to assembly
• Finally, there is no publically published list of National Key Points. So, although citizen’s rights are limited at places which are national key points, there is no way of knowing where these places are. This means that you could be breaking the law without even knowing it, by staging a protest at a national key point or even photographing it.

In a report released earlier this year (Secret State of the Nation report) the Right2Know Campaign revealed how there has been a 54% increase in the number of national key points across the country in the last 5 years – but we still don’t have a list of them. The state is actively promoting this unjust law, using it in blatant disregard for the citizen’s right to know, the public interest, and open access to information.

The SABC is a national key point

As such, we will do what the National Key Points Act would prohibit us from doing, and gather at the SABC on World Press Freedom Day. We will be holding a street carnival protest party in celebration of World Press Freedom Day, to highlight our demands for a greater culture of openness in South Africa, and to call for a rolling back of the shroud of secrecy! 

Read the Right2Know Campaign’s Secret State of the Nation report here, and find out how the National Key Points Act is continually being abused to enhance a culture of secrecy!

All are welcome to take part in the above mentioned event!

Come wearing RED & BLACK.

For further comment contact:

R2K Gauteng spokesperson: Dale McKinley (Cell: 072 429 4086; Email: dtmckinley@gmail.com)
3 May Event organiser: Adam Nord (Cell: 076 884 0327; Email: adam@ijrcenter.org)