Right to Know, Information, CSI...

September 28 is World Right To Know Day. First celebrated in 2002 to mark the establishment of the global Freedom of Information Advocates Network, the aim of the day, according to freedominfo.org  is to “raise awareness of every individual's right of access to government-held information: the right to know how elected officials are exercising power and how taxpayers' money is being spent.”

In South Africa, the resignation of President Thabo Mbeki - after being recalled by the ANC - and a slew of cabinet ministers, has brought our “right to know” into sharp focus over the past week. As citizens, we have the right to know and have access to information about these and other related developments.

In this week’s edition of NGO Pulse, Deputy CEO of the Open Democracy Advice Centre (ODAC) Mukelani Dimba, writes that the constitutional guarantee of the right of access to information, must be jealously guarded as a condition of democracy. Outlining the implications of the Protection of Information Bill, he writes, “… the Bill introduces among its principles the possibility of refusal of access to information if ‘there are good reasons to withhold it’. ‘Good reasons’ by whose account? The Bill continues along this legally untenable line by providing that “justifiable public or private considerations can be used to restrict access to state information.’” Click here to read the full article.  

Illustrating how the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) can be used, Research Intern at ODAC Ari Berlin asks: “[If] transparency, openness and access to information are key components of a healthy democracy... why does a simple request for access to information often result in a seemingly endless well of excuses from government?” Using the example of municipal housing allocation policies, he says that “using PAIA to ensure effective service delivery is critical.” Click here to read the full article.

Also in this edition, Butjwana Seokoma, SANGONeT’s Information Coordinator reports on the recent CAF Southern Africa “Innovating for Sustainability – Africans Investing in Africa” conference. He writes that delegates at the conference agreed that corporate social investment has a critical role to play in developing South Africa and addressing poverty. Click here to read the full article.

The recent poverty hearings, which we have reported on over the last few weeks, remain an issue for discussion amongst our readers. David Croome, Research Associate at ISAS, sent us a letter in which he shared his thoughts on a DFID study in Lesotho which has found that “the enormous reduction in migrant mining jobs for Basotho men in the RSA is radically altering the gender balance in such communities. The only employment for these previously well paid young men, whose remittances were the only cash income flows into the villages, is now taking low level jobs as herd boys, where they are competing with the 8-year-old boys that traditionally do this work.”  These findings resonate with those of the South African poverty hearings, which emphasise how poverty is an assault on human dignity.
This week in South Africa will go down in history as one which will for some; be remembered as a week in which we saw true democracy in action. For others, it may mark a dark period for democracy.

As South Africans, let us remember that we have the “right to know” – that our democracy is stable, our leadership sound, and that our rights as citizens which are guaranteed by the constitution, will be upheld. No matter who is in office.

As always, we invite your comments and suggestions.

- Janine Moolman, editor@sangonet.org.za