According to the latest changes to South Africa’s controversial Protection of Information Bill, whistle-blowers who disclose state secrets will be protected. The same protection is not offered to the media.
Mail & Guardian reports that when the above changes were accepted by the ruling ANC party on 9 November, opposition lawmakers on Parliament’s ad hoc committee proposed that a public-interest defence be introduced into the bill. This clause would allow journalists who published classified information to argue that they had done so for the public good.
ANC committee chairperson Cecil Burgess responded by saying the topic was not up for discussion at the moment. He stressed that the bill gives people the right to run to the police, not the media.
In response to the public outcry the first draft of the bill caused because it is seen to prevent criticism of the state, a provision for the classification of commercial information is to be removed.
Deliberations on the bill are likely to continue into 2011.
