Misinformation surrounding Presidential Pardons PAIA Request

On 08 November 2007 SAHA submitted a PAIA Request to the Department of the Presidency (PRE) requesting further information about the 515 Presidential Pardons referred to in the Annual Report of the Presidency: 2006-2007. This request was refused by PRE and SAHA promptly issued an Internal Appeal. PRE has since issued a letter to each of the 515 individuals who received a Presidential Pardon in 2006-2007 stating that SAHA would like to obtain their personal details as follows: "race, gender, sex conscious (sic) and religious beliefs; education, medical, criminal and employment history; and financial transactions in which you have been involved."

This letter is misleading and the statement regarding the information SAHA has requested is simply untrue. SAHA stated clearly in both the original PAIA Request and the Internal Appeal that it requested access to information such as the (i) name of individual pardoned, (ii) details of offence committed for which the individual is now being pardoned and (iii) individual’s prison number/s. SAHA is currently trying to resolve this issue with PRE as well as assuring those individuals who have received this letter from PRE of the correct context and content of SAHA's PAIA Request.

For further information about this project, please contact:

Charlotte Young
Research and Outreach Officer
Freedom of Information Programme
t +27 11 717 1941
f +27 11 717 1964
e foip@saha.org.za