NCOP Secrecy Bill Committee must produce a public participation plan

This morning the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) Ad Hoc Committee on the Protection of State Information Bill met to elect its chairperson. I will today submit a letter to the newly elected chairperson of the Committee, Mr Raseriti Tau, to request that the Committee produce a detailed public participation plan in terms of NCOP Rule 103(1).

This rule empowers the Committee to conduct public hearings and receive testimony from the public. The Committee's public participation plan should include the following provisions:

• Sufficient opportunity for broad and inclusive public consultation. The DA will request that public hearings take place both in the committee and in each of the nine provinces.
• Adequate opportunity for written submissions and oral hearings by communities, the media and key stakeholders. 
• That all meetings of the committee are open to the public, including the media, and that the necessary arrangements are made to accommodate members of the public wishing to attend. 
• A full briefing by the Minister of State Security, Mr Siyabonga Cwele, on the proposed legislation.

We are committed to engaging on the bill in the NCOP to ensure that it is brought in line with our Constitution and the values of an open, transparent and democratic society. During the deliberations on the bill in the NCOP, the DA will push for the inclusion of a series of amendments, including:

• A public interest defence;
• A strengthened public interest override;
• A sufficiently limited definition of "national security"; and
• A review of sections pertaining to almost all offences (such as the possession and disclosure of classified information).

The Protection of State Information Bill has been met with widespread condemnation, and the ANC's determination to push the bill through Parliament has seen the people of South Africa largely excluded from making their voices heard on this piece of repressive legislation. The bill has also undergone substantial amendments in the National Assembly without adequate public consultation.

The same must not be allowed to happen in the NCOP. The NCOP, as the voice of the provinces and their communities, must ensure the broadest possible public participation in the deliberations on this bill. We will take all possible steps to ensure that the deliberations take place in an open and transparent manner, and that the necessary amendments are made to the Bill.

Statement issued by Alf Lees, DA Member of the NCOP for Finance, December 7 2011

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