INLSA

Right2know campaign protest against the protection of State information Bill which took place outside Luthuli House. Picture: Antoine Ras

The Right2Know Campaign has vowed to “mobilise and activate” in all the provinces ahead of planned public hearings on the Protection of State Information Bill, in a bid to inform as many organisations and individuals as possible about the controversial legislation.

The National Council of Provinces’ ad hoc committee on the bill met yesterday to discuss its programme to deal with the bill, which was passed by the National Assembly in November.

The hearings are set to begin in the Western Cape on January 31. The committee’s 15 members will be split into three groups so that in the larger provinces hearings can take place in three areas on one day.

Right2Know’s Murray Hunter said his team would be hard at work organising workshops in all provinces to update members on the campaign’s remaining concerns.

A key focus would be to prepare interested organisations to make their own submissions at the public hearings.

The campaign is made up of about 400 organisations nationwide, many of which have been waiting for the opportunity to take part in the public participation process.

“We are expecting several dozen organisations to attend the hearings,” Hunter said.

“We will be mobilising actively towards providing quality submissions to the hearings and arriving with all the necessary information at hand. We will not be warming seats,” he said.

Committee chairman Raseriti Tau said that splitting into three groups in the provinces would help spread the committee’s resources.

Originally, the plan was to have two groups.

The programme for hearings will be finalised by the end of the week, following input from provincial whips.

Hearings

Following the first hearings in the Western Cape, the hearings are expected to move to the Eastern Cape on February 2 and to the Free State on February 7; Gauteng on February 14, Limpopo on February 16, North West on February 21, Mpumalanga on February 23, KwaZulu-Natal on February 28 and the Northern Cape on March 1.

Hearings on a shortlist of oral submissions are planned at Parliament for March 13 and 14.

The committee is expected to deliberate on the public hearings and submissions on March 15, and also plans to adopt its report on the bill on that day, after which it will be tabled before the National Council of Provinces.

Hunter voiced concern over the limited time allocated for the committee to complete its business.

“This is not enough time. The committee is well within its right to ask for more time and we will be calling on the chair to do so, in the interests of giving the process all the necessary time to unravel.”

He nevertheless welcomed the committee’s commitment to holding provincial meetings.

“This is very encouraging. Public participation is what we have been calling for from the start. There is an enormous amount of work to be done, and so many South Africans have made it clear that the bill is something they want to speak their minds on.

“I was struck by the fact that there seems to be a renewed willingness to engage, which gives us reason to look forward to real and meaningful engagement in the coming weeks.”

Tau stressed that neither urban nor rural areas would be left out of the process.

“Nobody must feel left out. We will ensure that enough space is made for everyone to feel included. Any section of SA society that feels they have an interest in this bill will be allowed to engage.

“Our task is to strengthen democracy,” he said.