Model Training Materials: Hate Speech, Defamation and National Security other community members involved in social protests regarding their territorial lands, chilling their exercise of freedom of expression.146 State Secrets The right to freedom of expression includes not only a right to express opinions but also a right to access information. Under international human rights law, this right encompasses a specific right to access information held by the government.147 States should adopt right to information laws to ensure public access to information.148 If a government refuses to make information available to the public, it must therefore have justified reasons for doing so. National security may require certain information to be kept secret. However, States should identify a specific harm before deciding not to disclose information. This harm should also be weighed against the public interest value in disclosing the information; should the latter outweigh the harm to national security, States should disclose the information.149 For information which reveals corruption, human rights abuses, environmental harm, government misconduct or similarly serious concerns, this public interest override should normally apply.150 Secrecy laws should accordingly be reformed to reflect these principles. Unfortunately, many States still have outdated secrecy laws, including severe sanctions for sharing information deemed to be secret, even where that information should be disclosed to the public. To avoid overapplication of such laws in a manner which limits public access to information, the Johannesburg Principles call for the following approach to be used: No person may be punished on national security grounds for disclosure of information if (1) the disclosure does not actually harm and is not likely to harm a legitimate national security interest, or (2) the public interest in knowing the information outweighs the harm from disclosure.151 Ibid. General Comment No. 34, note 43, para. 19; and Marcel Claude Reyes v. Chile, 19 September 2006, Series C, No. 151, https://bit.ly/3FZlrgb. 148 For a comprehensive list of indicators on what constitutes a strong right to information law, derived from international standards and better practices, see https://www.rti-rating.org/country-data/by-indicator/. 149 Special international mandates on freedom of expression, 2004 Joint Declaration, https://bit.ly/3DOgQLc; Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa, note 16, Principles 21(2) and 33; and Recommendation Rec(2002)2 of the Committee of Ministers to the Member States on Access to Official Documents, para. IV(2), https://rm.coe.int/16804c6fcc. 150 UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression, Report on protection of sources and whistleblowers, 8 September 2015, para. 10, undocs.org/A/70/361. 151 Johannesburg Principles, note 115, Principle 15. 146 147 The Centre for Law and Democracy is a non-profit human rights organisation working internationally to provide legal expertise on foundational rights for democracy. 32