Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 (Act No. 3 of 2000)

Regulations on Fair Administrative Procedures, 2002

Chapter 1 : Public Inquiries

Part 2: Public hearings

15. Access to public hearings
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1)Public hearings are open to the public, including the media, and the person presiding at the public hearing may not exclude the public, including the media, from the hearing, except when :
a)legislation applicable to the hearing provides for the hearing to take place in closed session; or
b)a matter is raised during the hearing which is –
i)privileged in terms of the law;
ii)confidential in terms of legislation; or
iii)of such a nature that its confidential treatment is for any other reason reasonable and justifiable in an open and democratic society.

 

2)The administrator or the person or panel conducting the public inquiry may take reasonable measures :
a)to regulate public access, including access of the media, to the place where the hearing is held;
b)to prevent and control misconduct by members of the public attending the hearing; and
c)to provide for the voluntary searching of any person, and, where appropriate, for the refusal of entry to, or the removal of any person from the place where that hearing is held.

 

3)The person presiding at a public hearing may :
a)order a member of the public, including the media, to leave the place where that hearing is held –
i)when the public is excluded from that hearing in terms of sub-regulation (1); or (ii) whenever this is necessary to give effect to the measures taken in terms of sub-regulation (2); or
b)order a person referred to in regulation 14(2) to leave that hearing if that person does not observe a directive of or conform to the procedures determined by the person presiding at the public hearing.

 

4)When instructed by the person presiding at a public hearing, a peace officer present at that hearing must remove a person :
a)who disrupts the proceedings or causes a nuisance; or
b)does not leave when ordered to leave in terms of sub-regulation (3).