INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING MINISTER MWANSA KAPEYA SAYS COMPARATIVE STUDY TOUR ON FREEDOM OF INFORMATION IS INFORMATIVE, EDUCATIVE. Information and Broadcasting Minister Mwansa Kapeya says the ongoing comparative study tour on Freedom of Information legislative currently being undertaken in United States is informative and educative. Mr. Kapeya, notes that although the Access to Information Bill (ATI) is still in its draft form in Zambia, it was evident after consultations in the US that it was well examined and inclusive. The Minister was speaking at the Zambian Embassy in Washington DC, when he paid a courtesy call on Zambia’s Ambassador to the United States Palan Mulonda. During the meeting, Mr. Kapeya briefed the Zambian diplomats on the developments in the various sectors in Zambia. The Minister said government had made tremendous progress in the formulation of the access to information bill. “We discovered that in its current form, the draft ATI bill cannot be operationalized unless other existing pieces of legislation, about 13 of them, which have a bearing on the draft ATI bill, are addressed to bring them in tandem and harmony with the proposed ATI bill,” Mr. Kapeya said He said the Ministry of Information has submitted the draft bill to the Ministry Of Justice for subsequent legislative processes. And in welcoming the Minister and his delegation, Ambassador Mulonda, said the Freedom of Information bill was a welcome development but one that required wide consultation and deep reflection. He said information was a double edged sword which had the potential of building a nation or destroying it altogether. Ambassador Mulonda was optimistic that the piece of legislation would help Zambia produce sector specific thought leaders once enacted. Mr. Kapeya who is accompanied by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Permanent Secretary George Zulu and senior officials earlier met with officials from the United States Department of State. The Minister and his delegation met with Mr. Aaron Sampson, Director- Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Ms. Mary Angelini, Deputy-Director, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor- Office for Africa, Ms. Lisa Sherman, Foreign Affairs Officer – Zambia, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Ms. Sheryl Walter, Director-Office of Information Programs and Services (FOIA), Ms. Christine Elder, Director, Bureau of African Affairs, Office of Southern Africa Affairs, Nick Murphy, Office of Information Programs and Services and Ambassador Paul Hare Former US Ambassador to Zambia. The delegation also held talks with Mr. Nate Jones, Freedom of Information Act Coordinator at the National Security Archive. The Minister and his delegation are expected to visit some print media houses in Pensacola, Florida. Issued by Patricia Littiya First Secretary (Press and Public Relations) Embassy of the Republic of Zambia Washington DC 20008 Phone +1 202 265 9717 Direct +1 202 265 0123 Fax +1 202 332 0826
Posted on: Fri, 17 Jan 2014 17:31:06 +0000
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