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Access
to Information and Protection of Privacy Bill
November 30, 2001
Contents
PART
I
Preliminary
1. Short
title.
2. Interpretation.
3. Application
of Act in relation to other laws.
4. General
application of Act.
1 Short
title TOP
This Act may be cited
as the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, 2001.
2 Interpretation TOP
In this Act—
"applicant"
means a person requesting access to a record or information held by
a public body;
"Commission"
means the Media and Information Commission established by section 39;
"educational
body" means a body defined in the Education Act [Chapter 25:04];
"exempted
information" means records exempt from application of this
Act and as prescribed under the First Schedule to this Act.
"employee",
in relation to a public body, includes a person retained under a contract
to perform services for the public body;
"head",
in relation to a public body, means—
(a) the person
designated as the head of a public body in the second column of the
Second Schedule; or
(b) any other
person whom the Minister may, from time to time designate as the head
of a public body for the purposes of this Act;
"health
care body" means a hospital, clinic or a mental health facility
as defined in the Mental Health Act [Chapter 15:06];
"judicial
administration record" means a record containing information
relating to a presiding officer or a justice of the peace, including—
(a) scheduling
of presiding officers and trials:
(b) content
of judicial training programmes;
(c) statistics
of judicial activity prepared by or for a judge;
"law enforcement"
includes—
(a) policing,
including criminal intelligence operations; or
(b) investigations
that lead to a penalty or sanction being imposed; or
(c) proceedings
that result in a penalty or sanction being imposed; or
(d) control
of immigration; or
(e) national
defence and security; or
(f) maintenance
of public order;
"local government
body" means—
(a) a municipality
as defined in the Urban Councils Act [Chapter 29:15];
(b) a council
as defined in the Rural District Councils Act [Chapter 29:19];
(c) a catchment
council or sub-catchment council established in terms of the Water
Act [Chapter 20:22];
(d) a board
of cemetery trustees established under the Cemeteries Act [Chapter 5:04]:
(e) any board,
committee, commission, panel, agency or corporation that is created
or owned by a body referred to in paragraphs(a) to(e) and all the
members or officers of which are appointed or chosen by or under the
authority of that body;
"mass media
owner" means an advertiser, publisher or broadcasting licensee
as defined in the Broadcasting Services Act [Chapter 12:06]
or any other licensee specified by the Minister by Statutory Instrument;
"Minister"
means the Minister responsible for Information and Publicity or any
other Minister to whom the President may, from time to time, assign
the administration of this Act;
"personal
information" means recorded information about an identifiable
person, and includes—
(a) the name,
address or telephone number;
(b) the race,
national or ethnic origin, colour, religious or political beliefs
or associations;
(c) the age,
sex, sexual orientation, marital status or family status;
(d) an identifying
number, symbol or other particulars assigned to that person;
(e) fingerprints,
blood type or inheritable characteristics;
(f) information
about a person’s health care history, including a physical or mental
disability;
(g) information
about educational, financial, criminal or employment history;
(h) anyone
else’s opinions about the individual; and
(i) the individual’s
personal views or opinions, except if they are about someone else;
(j) personal
correspondence, home and family;
"personal
information bank" means a collection of personal information
that is organised or retrievable by the name of an individual or by
an identifying number, symbol or other particular assigned to that individual
and includes personal images;
"public
body" means any body prescribed as a public body in terms of
the first column to the Second Schedule of this Act.
"record"
includes books, documents, maps, drawings, photographs, letters, vouchers,
papers and any other thing on which information is recorded or stored
by graphic, electronic, mechanical or other means, but does not include
a computer programme or any other mechanism that produces records;
"third party",
in relation to a request for access to a record or for correction of
personal information, means any person, group of persons or organisation
other than the person who made the request;
"trade secret"
means information, including a formula, pattern, compilation, programme,
device, product, method, technique or process, that is used, or may
be used, in business or for any commercial advantage and—
(a) derives
independent economic value, actual or potential, from not being generally
known to the public or to other persons who can obtain economic value
from its disclosure or use;
(b) is the
subject of reasonable efforts to prevent it from becoming generally
known; and
(c) the disclosure
of which would result in harm or improper benefit.
3 Application
of Act in relation to other laws TOP
(1) This Act
shall apply to matters relating to access to information, protection
of privacy and the media and shall be construed as being in addition
to and not in substitution for any other law which is not in conflict
or inconsistent with this Act.
(2) If any other
law relating to access to information, protection of privacy and the
media is in conflict or inconsistent with this Act, this Act shall prevail.
4 General
application of Act TOP
(1) This Act
shall apply to all records in the custody or under the control of a
public body, including court administration records but shall not include
the records listed in the First Schedule.
(2) This Act
shall not limit the information available by law to a party to a legal
proceeding.
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