Data Privacy - PAIA Manuals

The Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 ("PAIA") came into operation on 9 March 2001. PAIA seeks, among other things, to give effect to the Constitutional right of access to any information held by the State or by any other person where such information is required for the exercise or protection of any right and gives natural and juristic persons the right of access to records held by either a private or public body, subject to certain limitations, in order to enable them to exercise or protect their rights. 

Where a request is made in terms of PAIA to a private body, that private body must disclose the information if the requester is able to show that the record is required for the exercise or protection of any rights, and provided that no grounds of refusal contained in PAIA are applicable. PAIA sets out the requisite procedural issues attached to information requests. Section 51 of PAIA obliges private bodies to compile a manual to enable a person to obtain access to information held by such private body and stipulates the minimum requirements that the manual has to comply with.

APM Terminals' PAIAI Manuals are compiled in accordance with section 51 of PAIA as amended by the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 ("POPIA"), which gives effect to everyone’s Constitutional right to privacy. POPIA promotes the protection of personal information processed by public and private bodies, including certain conditions so as to establish minimum requirements for the processing of personal information.

POPIA amends certain provisions of PAIA, balancing the need for access to information against the need to ensure the protection of personal information by providing for the establishment of an Information Regulator to exercise certain powers and perform certain duties and functions in terms of POPIA and PAIA, providing for the issuing of codes of conduct and providing for the rights of persons regarding unsolicited electronic communications and automated decision making in order to regulate the flow of personal information and to provide for matters concerned therewith. 

These PAIA manuals also include information on the submission of objections to the processing of personal information and requests to delete or destroy personal information or records thereof in terms of POPIA.