Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

The defence force will finally brief Parliament on its troops’ combat readiness behind closed doors after ANC MPs rejected an open debate.

The ruling party and opposition DA fought during a parliamentary committee debate over whether MPs had the right to question the military operations publicly, with the ANC parliamentarians citing national security considerations.

The debate followed Defence and Military Veterans Minister Lindiwe Sisulu’s refusal to brief Parliament on the same issue.

The committee had earlier written to the SA National Defence Force, saying Parliament demanded a full briefing on the state of the troops.

But acting defence secretary Tshepe Motumi wrote back to the committee, warning that an open briefing could compromise national security.

“The department has sought a closed meeting on this matter because the information to be disclosed is of a sensitive nature. Such disclosure, if made public, could compromise national security,” wrote Motumi.

He said the SANDF had also asked Sisulu to convey its reluctance to brief committee members in the presence of the media and other people.

“It is within this vein that a request for a closed meeting is made. It is hoped that the (committee) will understand and appreciate the very unique role the SANDF plays in the protection of the territorial integrity of South Africa,” wrote Motumi.

ANC MPs backed Motumi’s request, saying a public briefing would expose the country’s military secrets, which could make South Africa vulnerable to attack.

Veteran MP Andrew Mlangeni warned that the media should not be allowed to attend such a briefing because of the sensitive nature of the information that could be disclosed. “It has to be a closed meeting; I don’t know why we have invited the press. This is a sensitive matter; it can only be discussed in a closed meeting. How can we argue with that?” said Mlangeni.

Charles Kekana, another ANC MP, said the secret nature of military operations – even in Western countries – made it necessary to keep certain information out of the public sphere.

“The military operates on secrets. You cannot say you don’t have enemies until you are attacked. Militaries operate totally differently and secrecy is a big thing,” he said.

But the DA’s David Maynier said national security was too broad a definition to be used as the sole reason for a closed briefing.

He said the defence force could not be let off the hook simply because it invoked national security to justify keeping important information secret.

“In any constitutional democracy, the departure point must be that secrecy should be the exception and not the rule. National security is too broad because the concept is ambiguous… the onus would be on the department to show how disclosing the information would cause significant harm to the state,” he said.