S-Africa endorses huge intelligence reforms

(MENAFN) South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has approved significant changes to the country’s intelligence structure with the introduction of the General Intelligence Laws Amendment Bill. This new legislation disbands the existing State Security Agency (SSA) and creates two distinct organizations: the Foreign Intelligence Service (FIS) and the Domestic Intelligence Agency (DIA). The FIS will focus on gathering international intelligence to address external security threats, while the DIA will handle domestic counterintelligence and security risks.

The law also reinstates the South African National Academy of Intelligence (SANAI) and the Intelligence Training Institute to improve intelligence training for both foreign and domestic operations. Additionally, the legislation introduces new protocols to address concerns over bulk interception of internet traffic, with measures for internal authorization and judicial reviews.

Under the new law, the management and financial oversight of intelligence agencies will be handled by the Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence, a multiparty parliamentary committee that also processes public complaints and monitors operations.

These reforms amend several key pieces of legislation, including the National Strategic Intelligence Act of 1994 and the Intelligence Services Act of 2002. The changes come in response to performance concerns within the State Security Agency, following reports of large-scale cyber thefts, such as the 300 million rand ($16.6 million) stolen from the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure in a major cyberattack.

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