Progress made on information law
Parliamentarians will be able to discuss the first draft of the Access to Information Bill by September, while the bill could become law before the end of the year.
This is according to Frederico Links, who is part of the Access to Information Namibia lobby group.
Speaking during a recent stakeholder engagement, Links who is working with policymakers, said there had been meaningful progress made on the draft bill, which aims to secure broad access to information.
“The minister of information [Stanley Simataa] informed us that his wish is to have the draft law in the National Assembly in September and that it could be passed this year,” said Links.
According to him, the bill was currently with a cabinet committee for further scrutiny.
“We are making progress. The draft has gone through various revisions. The latest draft is with a Cabinet Committee on Legislation, but I stand to be corrected. That is where we are at this point in time,” said Links.
The delay in implementing an access to information law also meant that Namibia could benefit from the experiences of other African countries, which had already implemented similar laws.
“Namibia is in an opportune position; we can learn from the experiences of other countries. Namibia's law will reflect what is in the African model,” said Links.
Giving his suggestions on the planned implementation, executive director of the Media Rights Agenda, Edetaen Ojo, said members of the public should be allowed to participate in the drafting of the bill through open consultation.
“The law should be opened up, it should be broad… open it up, don't limit it. As much as possible, it should really be open.
“Don't make the process take too long, make it as short as possible. The best practice also is that there be commissioner or an ombudsman when it comes to access to information,” said Ojo.
Retired academic André du Pisani said while access to information is an important policy intervention, there were notable concerns around security that needed to be addressed.
“In the current revision of the policy, this matter is very complex. Whether we like it or not, people will react differently,” said Du Pisani.
According to him, once sensitive information is accessed, there would be concerns about who would be entitled to see it and who would protect the information
“Where is the information kept? Who has access to the information? What do we do with the information? It is very hard to deal with these very tough questions, these very hard issues,” said Du Pisani.
A ministry of information official said discussions were being held with the Office of the Ombudsman and various security stakeholders to iron out the nitty-gritties around the bill.
OGONE TLHAGE
This is according to Frederico Links, who is part of the Access to Information Namibia lobby group.
Speaking during a recent stakeholder engagement, Links who is working with policymakers, said there had been meaningful progress made on the draft bill, which aims to secure broad access to information.
“The minister of information [Stanley Simataa] informed us that his wish is to have the draft law in the National Assembly in September and that it could be passed this year,” said Links.
According to him, the bill was currently with a cabinet committee for further scrutiny.
“We are making progress. The draft has gone through various revisions. The latest draft is with a Cabinet Committee on Legislation, but I stand to be corrected. That is where we are at this point in time,” said Links.
The delay in implementing an access to information law also meant that Namibia could benefit from the experiences of other African countries, which had already implemented similar laws.
“Namibia is in an opportune position; we can learn from the experiences of other countries. Namibia's law will reflect what is in the African model,” said Links.
Giving his suggestions on the planned implementation, executive director of the Media Rights Agenda, Edetaen Ojo, said members of the public should be allowed to participate in the drafting of the bill through open consultation.
“The law should be opened up, it should be broad… open it up, don't limit it. As much as possible, it should really be open.
“Don't make the process take too long, make it as short as possible. The best practice also is that there be commissioner or an ombudsman when it comes to access to information,” said Ojo.
Retired academic André du Pisani said while access to information is an important policy intervention, there were notable concerns around security that needed to be addressed.
“In the current revision of the policy, this matter is very complex. Whether we like it or not, people will react differently,” said Du Pisani.
According to him, once sensitive information is accessed, there would be concerns about who would be entitled to see it and who would protect the information
“Where is the information kept? Who has access to the information? What do we do with the information? It is very hard to deal with these very tough questions, these very hard issues,” said Du Pisani.
A ministry of information official said discussions were being held with the Office of the Ombudsman and various security stakeholders to iron out the nitty-gritties around the bill.
OGONE TLHAGE
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