Part ii the south african human rights commission the south african human rights commission hereinafter referred to as the sahrc has compiled a guide. Introduction the promotion of access to information act no. The motivation for giving effect to the right of access to information is to foster a culture of transparency and accountability in both public and private bodies, and to promote a society in which the people of south africa have effective access to information to enable them to fully exercise and protect all their rights. The new kenyan access to information act will hopefully enhance government openness with information every citizen is entitled to see. All citizens of south africa have a right to access information which affects their lives. This transparent flow of information between government and its citizens is necessary for democracy. Promotion of access to information act the promotion of access to information act paia, 2 of 2000 gives you the right to access information that you might require for the exercise or protection of any rights.
Kilombero is situated in the morogoro region in the centresouth of the country. It contains information which would be reasonably required of any person wishing to exercise any right set out in the act. Access to information government communication and information. Information available in accordance with other legislation 5 8. It is also mandated in terms of the promotion of access to information act 2000 paia to perform specific responsibilities as the lead monitoring agency on the implementation of. It applies specifically to south africa, but is part of the global drive towards freedom of information. Help is at hand, in the from of a userfriendly guide on how to use the promotion of access to information act, published in all 11 official languages by the south african human rights commission sahrc. The national archives of south africa act of 1996 nasa. And in order to foster a culture of transparency and accountability in public and private bodies by giving effect to the right of access to information. Laws of south africa is a project of the oliver r tambo law library, university of pretoria, in partnership with saflii southern african legal information institute and the constitutional court trust, the aim of which is to consolidate the south african legislation acts of parliament and to supply this information free to the public. This in turn affords and ensures access to justice which is a fundamental cornerstone of our democracy.
Information training manual for public officials,41 and the essential. Acts online provides legislation, including amendments and regulations, in an intuitive, online format. Give the uniform resource identifier uri with latitude and longitude for. In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the northsouth position of a point on the earths surface. The last census was held in 2011, with a more recent intercensal national survey conducted in 2016.
Contact details section 511a of the act name of company consulting engineers south africa registration number there is no registration number as consulting engineers south africa is an association not for gain. South africa, the southernmost country on the african continent, renowned for its varied topography, great natural beauty, and cultural diversity, all of which have made the country a favored destination for travelers since the legal ending of apartheid afrikaans. Before the enactment of the interim constitution there was no general right of access to information in south africa. Promotion of access to information act, 2000 acts online. They have a right to know how government functions and how decisions taken by them may affect their lives. Manual prepared in terms of section 51 of the promotion of access to information act no. Developments in access to information litigation and. The promotion of access to information act 2 of 2000 paia is the national legislation contemplated in section 322 of the constitution. In a groundbreaking book, access to information in africa brings together for the first time a collection of african academics and practiti. The state of access to information in south africa csvr. South africa is a nation of about 55 million 2016 people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and religions. Part ii portrays the placement of access to national security information within south africas legislative framework, taking into account the key laws underpinning both secrecy and disclosure. With acts you are guaranteed the latest and most up to date resource for your legislative needs. One of the main requirements specified in the act, is the compilation of an information manual that provides information on both the types and categories of records held by a private body.
The south african human rights commission sahrc plays a key role in the implementation of paia. Promotion to access information act sika south africa. Promotion of access to information act department of justice. Saha south african history archive access to information. Using this legislation, context is examined from the perspective that power is access to information, which. Constitution of the republic of south africa act 108 of 1996, pp. Bridgestone south africa pty ltd formerly bridgestonefirestone south africa pty ltd. The information officer may refuse a request if they can prove that it will compromise the safety of. Promotion of access to information act paia department. Access to information government communication and. Legal aid sa supports the constitutional right of access to information and. Abstract access by the public to archives and public records in south africa has been significantly affected by the introduction of the national archives of south africa act no.
Open access to scholarly communication in south africa occurs online via journals, repositories, and a variety of other tools and platforms. Act means the promotion of access to information act, act 2 of 2000, as amended from time to time. The promotion of access to information act 2 of 2000 paia is legislation in the republic of south africa allowing access to any information held by the state, and any information held by private bodies that is required for the exercise and protection of any rights. On 24 july 2007, the south gauteng high court johannesburg granted an. Constitution means the constitution of the republic of south africa, 1996 act 1088 of 1996. The state of access to information in south africa commonwealth. The constitution goes further to entrench socioeconomic rights sers in.
South africa history, capital, flag, map, population. Access to information in south africa the judicial role in. Once youve met certain requirements, youll be granted access to the information you require. The promotion of access to information act, 2000 or paia. Section five offers a series of recommendations linked to specific strategies and priorities that might be adopted by civil society organisations for the purposes of lobbying and advocacy work around realising the right of access to information in south africa and more specifically, to. For instance, writing not in respect of access to information generally but rather in. The legal protection of privacy in south africa electronic journal of. Guide on how to use the promotion of access to information. South africa is home to an estimated five million illegal immigrants, including some three million zimbabweans. These and other difficulties become apparent in a case study of south africas promotion of access to information act paia, of 2000. The kenyan access to information act of 2016 pdf was enacted on september 21st. Promotion of access to information manual brait south africa limited including all subsidiaries page 3 of 20 1.
Promotion of access to information act, 2000 south africa. This document serves as the pwc information manual and provides reference to the records held by pwc and the process to request access to such records. Access to information act roggkenya reporting on good. Republic of south africa south african public library and information services bill as introduced in the national assembly proposed section 76. Is south africas constitutional right of access to information working in practice. Compared to other african nations, open access in south africa has grown quickly in recent years. Pdf south africas promotion of access to information act. The act is administered by the south african human rights commission and theres more information on paia here. Breathing life into freedom of information laws the center for. The promotion of access to information act 2 of 2000 paia provides the framework and procedures for the exercise of the constitutional right to information. Access to information act 2 of 2000 paia, against the appellant, the industrial development corporation of south africa ltd idc in the high court johannesburg for an order that the idc furnish certain documents and records to them. Promotion of access to information act, 2000 wikipedia.
The guide is available in all of the official languages. State and any information that is held by another person and that is required for the exercise or protection of any rights. Trying to get information from a government department or private company. Access to information in africa 20 table of contents all country summary botswana democratic republic of congo gambia kenya malawi namibia nigeria senegal south africa swaziland tanzania uganda zambia zimbabwe 4 11 17 23 27 33 39 45 51 57 63 75 69 81 87. Access cape town office center for high performance computing 15 lower hope rd rosebank, cape town south africa 7700. Latitude is used together with longitude to specify the precise. If the role of civil society in realising the right of access to information is going to be effective in both the short and longerterm, it needs to be informed by a comprehensive overview of the state of access to information in south africa with particular focus on the implementation of paia. According to unesco, south africa is a leading african country in terms of open access policies on the governmental level and grassroots. The full pdf version of this book as well as additional background material and laws on freedom of information can be downloaded at. Considerable resources were directed instead towards maintaining secrecy in government. It gives effect to the constitutional right of access to any information held by the state, and any information held by private bodies that is required for the exercise and protection of any rights. Promotion of access to information act south african.
Access to information promotion of access to information act 2. The promotion of access to information act paia and the. The south african human rights commission sahrc is the constitutional body charged with promoting, monitoring and educating human rights in democratic south africa. Section 10 of paia provides that the south african human rights commission must compile simple and easily comprehensible guidelines on how to use the promotion of access to information act.
Pdf south africa is one of the few countries in the world that has. Contents of act section part 1 introductory provisions chapter 1 definitions and interpretation protection of personal information act 4 of 20 proclaimed see pendlex s. In 2000, the promotion of access to information act paia came into law, fulfilling the provision of section 32 of. Guide on how to use the promotion of access to information act 2 of 2000 6 english useful terms terms description access fee this is the fee paid by the requester to the public or private body from which you are seeking the information, to cover the costs of finding and copying the records you require. Information held by consulting engineers south africa in terms of the act 5 9. Many statutes contained provisions making it a criminal offence for officials to release information. We are the leading resource for freely available legislation in south africa and are used daily by thousands of professionals and industry leaders. Manual on the promotion of access to information act 2 of 2000. Lines of constant latitude, or parallels, run eastwest as circles parallel to the equator. Be it therefore enacted by the parliament of the republic of south africa, as follows.
The study uses south africa as a case study representing the minority privileged, who are very rich first world, compared with the majority population living in rural and urban townships that represents the underdeveloped, poor parts of. Sika south africa supports the constitutional right of access to information and we are committed to provide you access to our records in accordance with the provisions of the act, the confidentiality we owe third parties and the principles of south african law. The inclusion of access to information in the constitution of south africa and its concomitant legislation, promotion of access to information act paia is aimed at promoting transparency, accountability and democratic governance in the hitherto closed, authoritarian and apartheid society. Implementation of the promotion of access to information act.
Preamble recognising that the system of government in south africa before 27 april 1994, amongst others, resulted in a secretive and unresponsive culture in public and private. South africa and to whom requests for information in terms of the act shall be addressed 2. Presidential orders gave foi officers latitude to reclassify declassified documents. The access to information act arrangement of sections shon titlc.
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