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[Johannesburg, 13 July 2005] -
South African Web sites will soon be used as a repository of company information manuals developed by private bodies, as they comply with the Promotion of Access to Information Act of 2000 (PAIA).Section 51 of the PAIA of 2000 stipulates that all private bodies (companies, close corporations, partnerships, trusts and sole proprietors) develop an information manual by 31 August.The manuals will include relevant information about the companies, their ownership and details of where they operate.The manual must be made available on companies' Web sites, should they have one. It must also be available at the body's head office and filed with the Human Rights Commission and any representative body of such business.Private bodies must also provide the PAIA guide, published by the South African Human Rights Commission, to guide users on the process of accessing information from them.“The Act is one of the constitutionally mandated acts, to make the right to information a practical reality,” says Tseliso Thipanyane, deputy CEO of operations of the Human Rights Commission. “It was passed in order to promote democracy and to better realise the promotion of the protection of human rights.”Initially, there was no clear sanction for the Human Rights Commission to act if businesses failed to comply with the Act's requirements. An amendment was therefore passed in 2003.Housed within the Judicial Matters Second Amendment Act number 55 of 2003, the amendment says a head of business that wilfully or in a grossly negligent manner fails to publish the manual will be guilty of an offence and may face a fine or imprisonment of up to two years.Amendment in the pipelineThere is, however, no need for small companies to panic, says Thipanyane.“We feel it is very unfair for very small private bodies to have to develop a manual and publish it on a Web site that they may not have. That is why we have consistently asked the justice department to consider amending the Act.”The legislative division of the Department of Justice is working on the amendment, says Barrington Mkhize, deputy chief state law advisor. The impact on small private bodies will, however, depend on whether the amendments will get to Parliament before the deadline.“While an exemption for small businesses will be welcomed, it would be difficult for the Department of Justice to formulate the criteria in respect of the types of businesses that are exempted,” says Wim Mostert, partner at Mostert Opperman Goodburn Attorneys.For example, should the exemption thresholds be based on turnover, nature of business or number of employees? Mostert points out that as the Act currently stands, all types of “private bodies” must comply by 31 August, irrespective of the nature or size of the business and whether it trades or not. This means even dormant companies and closed corporations, property-owning entities and family trusts will have to comply unless the Act is amended, he says.He also points out that it will take a small miracle to get the amendment to the Act passed by Parliament before 31 August. If not done in time, many businesses will automatically be guilty of an offence, albeit for a few weeks before the amendment goes through.Mostert says a compliant manual can be generated quickly and should not exceed three pages for most businesses. Guidelines are available on the Human Rights Commission Web site.
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