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Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Bill, 2007 (H.B. 20, 2007)
Gazetted in Gazette Extraordinary on Friday 14th December, 2007

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Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Bill, 2007

MEMORANDUM

The purpose of this Bill to amend in the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, 2002, (“the principal Act”) with a view to improving or clarifying certain of its provisions.

The individual clauses of the Bill are explained more fully below.

Clause 1
This clause sets out the Bill’s short title.

Clause 2
This clause seeks to replace or add certain definitions in the interpretation section of the principal Act.

Clause 3
This clause seeks to reconstitute the existing Media and Information Commission as the Zimbabwe Media Commission, having the functions set out in the substituted section 39.

Clause 4
This clause inserts a new Part in the principal Act which seeks to constitute a Media Council to be appointed by the Commission. The Media Council will be responsible for developing and enforcing a code of conduct and ethics governing the rules of conduct to be observed by journalists and mass media services.

Clause 7
This clause proposes to mitigate the rule contained in section 65 of the principal Act that Zimbabweans alone must wholly own or control mass media services.

Clause 8
This clause seeks to extend the period of registration of mass media services from two to five years.

Clauses 9, 11, 12, 13 and 14
These clauses seek to insert a new section and amend existing ones with a view to clearly specifying the rights and obligations of the Commission and a mass media service or news agency upon an application by the mass media service or news agency to renew its registration, or a refusal of registration of the mass media service or news agency, or a suspension or cancellation of the registration of the same.

Clause 15
This clause seeks to specify with greater particularity what privileges accrue to journalists who choose to be accredited. It also seeks to simplify the procedure for accrediting journalists.

Clause 18 and 19
These clauses repeal sections 83 and 85 of the principal Act, which are rendered superfluous by the vesting of disciplinary powers over journalists and media services in the proposed Media Council.

Clause 21
The effect of this clauses is to vest the power to make regulations and other statutory instruments for the purposes of the principal Act in the Commission, subject to the approval of the Minister.

PRESENTED BY THE MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND PUBLICITY

BILL

TO amend the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act [Chapter 10:27] and to provide for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

ENACTED by the President and the Parliament of Zimbabwe.

1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Act, 2007.

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