Posted in: Secrecy Bill|November 13, 2013
Parliament passes Secrecy Bill again, and again (and then again)
Yesterday after 5pm the National Assembly adopted the Secrecy Bill, defending its constitutionality for the third time in less than a year. MPs have confirmed R2K’s fears that the President’s return of the Bill on grounds that it was unconstitutional was nothing more than an delaying tactic.
When the President referred the Bill back to parliament we were willing to engage with this in good faith, but parliament has turned the process into nothing more than a sham. The campaign to stop the Secrecy Bill now reluctantly turns its back on Parliament.
The moment is bitter sweet as we recall the thousands of people that took to the streets and joined in solidarity around the world. We take pride in the rigour with which we forced Parliament to engage, reengage, and reengage again in reviewing the Secrecy Bill and can be proud of the many reforms we have forced into the Bill over the last 2+ years.
However, the Secrecy Bill without a doubt remains an unconstitutional threat to our freedom, with no full public interest defence, whistleblower protection or public domain defence (see briefing note below for a full list of R2K objections to the current Bill).
With few exceptions, MPs of the ruling party have shown themselves to be uncritical voting fodder for party caucus bosses under the sway of the securocrats. Rather than representing the aspirations of the majority of South Africans who remain trapped in poverty after 20 years of formal democracy, Members of Parliament have put their narrow career interests above their personal consciences and the needs of our democracy.
One of the few democratic gains from this process has been the emergence of the Right2Know Campaign. The campaign mobilised a unity of purpose across society that we have not seen since the struggle to end Apartheid. South Africans have united to stand for accountable governance that can meet the needs of all our people.
We will continue the struggle to defend and advance the right to know, challenging other secrecy legislation, fighting for transparency and accountability in our communities, demanding media freedom, diversity, and an end to profiteering in telecommunications so that we can all enjoy the right to communicate.
We remain committed to opposing the Secrecy Bill.
Parliament has failed in its duties by repeatedly endorsing this draconian Bill, and if the president signs it into law, we must, reluctantly, turn to the Constitutional Court to protect our hard won freedom.
For comment please contact:
R2K National Coordinator: Mark Weinberg (084 993 0591)
R2K Gauteng spokesperson: Dale McKinley (072 429 4086)
R2K KZN spokesperson: Desmond D’Sa (083 982 6939)
