The Right2Know march on parliament

Photo: Jo-Anne Duggan

Lead by a man in chains, his mouth taped closed, their placards said it all: “fight for your right to know”, “nquanda secrecy bill”, “moeg vir die leuens”, “access to information is a right”, “silences are 4 skelm mense” and “jou ma se secret”. Over a thousand people joined the march headed by clerics and prominent citizens in support of the Right2Know’s campaign. 

Moving at a slow pace, the procession wound its way to parliament, attracting curious looks from passersby; some shouted their support, others shook their heads – probably not quite sure what all the fuss was about.  Energetic organisers egged the marchers forward from the back of a truck, reminding them why the Protection of Information Bill is considered a threat to democracy. The crowd were disciplined, determined and surprisingly cheerful – there’s something quite invigorating about marching in support of a common cause, something quite festive about being waving placards and banners in a public place. It was clear that no one expected to be mistreated by the police who kept a watchful eye over the event.

While the spirit was buoyant, the Right2Know’s concerns, as articulated in their flyer,  were clearly shared by all.

-  The Bill will create a society of secrets
-  Any state agency, government department, even a parastatal and your local municipality, can classify public information as secret.
-  Anything and everything can potentially be classified as secret at official discretion if it is in the ‘national interest’. Even ordinary information relating to service delivery can become secret.
-  Commercial information can be made secret, making it very difficult to hold business and government to account for inefficiency and corruption.
-  Anyone involved in the ‘unauthorised’ handling and disclosure of classified information can be prosecuted; not just the state official who leaks information as is the case in other democracies.
-  The disclosure even of some information which is not formally classified can land citizens in jail. This will lead to self-censorship and have a chilling effect on free speech.
-  Whistleblowers and journalists could face more time in prison than officials who deliberately conceal public information that should be disclosed.
-  A complete veil is drawn over the workings of the intelligence services. It will prevent public scrutiny of our spies should they abuse their power or breach human rights.
-  Officials do not need to provide reason for making information secret
-  There is no independent oversight mechanism to prevent information in the public interest from being made secret.
-  The Minister of State Security, whose business is secrecy, becomes the arbiter of what information across all of government must remain secret or may be disclosed to the public.
-  Even the leaking of secret information in the public interest is criminalised.
-  Unusually severe penalties of up to 25 years in prison will silence whistleblowers, civil society and journalists doing their job.
-  All these factors will limit public scrutiny of business and government, whether through Parliament or journalists. Accountability will be curtailed and service delivery to the people will be undermined.

Outside the parliament, the guardians of our democracy stood secure behind their imposing palisade fence, their safety assured by a barricade of policemen and women.  The crowds came to a halt outside the gates, cheering, chanting and clapping as speaker after speaker expressed their opposition and spelled out the consequences of enacting the bill. Kader Asmal drew loud applause when he told the crowd that, for the first time in his life, he was ashamed to speak before parliament, adding that “the bill rejects the principles of the constitution that we fought for”. Writer Andre Brink drew a laugh when he warned the government not to “f**k with writers”, “even if they wore condoms”. Cartoonist Jonathan Shapiro, better known as Zapiro, told the crowd how he had marched against a similar bill 27 years ago. Archbishop Thabo Makgoba stressed that, “if we have nothing to hide, we don’t need the bill”. Tony Erenreich a powerfully persuasive orator insisted that the bill must “go now!” Ashley Low, a resident of Delt spoke about the impact of the bill on the poor while Mark Weinberg, national coordinator of the Right2Know campaign, explained that the bill was but one of a number of measures that could have the combined effect of “undermining the right to access information and the freedom of expression enshrined in the constitution”.

Two memorandums, one signed by 11,000 people, the other by 500 of the country’s leading writers, addressed to President Jacob Zuma, Speaker Max Sisulu and the Chairman of the Adhoc committee on the Protection of Information Bill were handed to parliament’s chief operations officer Tango Lamani.

Citizens across the country have spoken out, expressing their opposition to the Protection of Information Bill. It remains to be seen whether the powers that be will heed the call for the “right to know”.

See also: the Right2Know Campaign: Week of Action and the Right2Know website

Jo-Anne Duggan

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