ISS Seminar: Secrecy: Exploring the Tensions Between Security and Democracy

Date: 2008-06-12 to Invalid date

ISS Seminar: Secrecy: Exploring the Tensions Between Security and Democracy
Pretoria, 12 June 2008

 

Secrecy: A film by Peter Galison and Robb Moss

 

You are invited to attend the screening of US documentary Secrecy followed by a discussion on secrecy and the Protection of Information Bill in South Africa.

 

In a single recent year the U.S. classified about five times the number of pages added to the Library of Congress. We live in a world where the production of secret knowledge dwarfs the production of open knowledge. Depending on whom you ask, government secrecy is either the key to victory in our struggle against terrorism, or our Achilles heel. But is so much secrecy a bad thing?

 

Secrecy saves: Counter-terrorist intelligence officers have recalled with fury how a newspaper article describing National Security Agency abilities directly led to the loss of information that could have avoided the terrorist killing of 241 soldiers in Beirut late in October 1983. Secrecy guards against wanton nuclear proliferation, against the spread of biological and chemical weapons. Secrecy is central to our ability to wage an effective war against terrorism.

 

Secrecy corrupts: From extraordinary rendition to warrant-less wiretaps and Abu Ghraib, we have learned that, under the veil of classification, even our leaders can give in to dangerous impulses. Secrecy increasingly hides national policy, impedes coordination among agencies, bloats budgets and obscures foreign accords; secrecy throws into the dark our system of justice and derails the balance of power between the executive branch and the rest of government.

 

This film is about the vast, invisible world of government secrecy. By focusing on classified secrets, the government`s ability to put information out of sight if it would harm national security, Secrecy explores the tensions between our safety as a nation, and our ability to function as a democracy.

 

Protection of Information Bill

 

On the 18th of March 2008, the Protection of Information Bill 2008 was published in the Government Gazette for public comment. This Bill seeks to create a framework for the protection of state information and a system for the classification and declassification of information. This Bill has, however, been received by the public with concern as it seeks to create offences for the communication of state information with the intention of prejudicing the state. As such it has been criticised by some as an attempt to curtail criticism. The panel of speakers will include a presentation by a member of the legislative drafting team from the Ministry for Intelligence Services, representatives from the media and concerned civil society stakeholders. 

 

Venue: ISS Conference Room, Block C, Brooklyn Court, 361 Veale Street, Brooklyn, Pretoria
(Parking in Brooklyn Mall and ABSA Court)

 

Time: 15h00 – 18h00

RSVP:  Lauren Hutton; Tel: 012 346 9500; email: [email protected]