MISA, Civil Society host MPs to dinner over Access To Information (ATI) bill

Members of parliament have assured MISA-Malawi and other Civil Society Organisations (CSO) in the country that they would support the Access To Information (ATI) Bill when it is tabled in the National Assembly. The MPs spoke at a dinner that was hosted by MISA Malawi in partnership with the Civil Society Coalition for Quality Basic Education (CSCQBE), an organization that advocates for quality education in the country.

Speaking at the dinner, which was hosted at Sunbird Lilongwe Hotel on 25 November 2009, Lexon Ndalama who is the Board Chairperson of CSCQBE said the ATI Bill will not only benefit media workers, but also the civil society including members of the public.  He cited CSCQBE as an example that should be emulated by the civil society in lobbying for the ATI Bill to be enacted. “We all need information. We are interested in education issues but I believe every organization has at one time wanted to access information from government departments. This is the time to push for the bill to be tabled in the August House.
 
For a long time, the ATI Bill has been labeled as a media campaign and that once enacted, the law would only benefit journalists. Following constant dialogue between MISA-Malawi and other stakeholders such as civil society organizations, members of the public have come to realize that the bill will benefit almost everyone seeking information.
 
Taking his turn, Guest of Honor at the dinner MP Frank Viyazyi who doubles as member of the Media and Communications Committee and Chairperson of the Education Committee in parliament said the two committees were ready to support the bill once tabled in parliament. However, some MPs expressed concern over the conduct of journalists who they accused of fabricating stories. They expressed fear that the ATI Bill might be abused by some journalists who they further described as irresponsible.
 
Among other notable figures and speakers at the event were MISA-Malawi Chairperson Brian Ligomeka and the National Director Aubrey Chikungwa, the Executive Director of the Media Council of Malawi Baldwin Chiyamwaka, personal assistant to the Minister of Information Lewis Msasa and Chairpersons of various parliamentary committees.
 
The dinner was hosted with financial support from CSCQBE and the Capacity Building for Non-state Actors. The dinner came hot on the heels of a meeting by civil society organizations aimed at wooing support to have the ATI Bill enacted by the National Assembly. The meeting was held in Lilongwe on 12 November 2009.

Reagan Malumo
Programme Officer: Media Freedom Monitoring and Research
Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Regional Secretariat
21 Johann Albrecht St
Private Bag 13386
Windhoek
Namibia
Phone: +264 61 232 975
Fax: +264 61 248 016
Mobile: +264 81 311 2626

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