Cwele won't budge

State Security Minister Siyabonga Cwele has taken his fight against the inclusion of a public interest defence clause in the Protection of State Information Bill to parliament's second chamber.

Briefing the National Council of Provinces ad hoc committee processing the bill, Cwele and his acting director-general, Dennis Dlomo, said they remained opposed to the insertion of the clause because no other country in the world had a similar clause in comparable legislation.

"[To] those who are still calling for the public interest defence, we don't see such experience in the world, including Canada, where it is a limited procedure because they did not have a protected disclosures act," said Cwele.

The council's ad hoc committee started processing the bill yesterday and is to embark on nationwide public hearings on Tuesday.

The bill was passed by the National Assembly in November despite stiff resistance from groups that objected to the omission of the clause.

All eyes are now on the council to see if it will heed calls for a public interest defence.

"The bill is not about secrecy, it is about balancing openness and secrecy in conduct of national security," Cwele said.