35 Penalty for deliberately falsifying personal information
Any person who, when required under any enactment to supply to a public body any personal information
verbally or in writing about himself or herself or a third party, supplies any information which he or she knows to
be false or does not have reasonable grounds for believing to be true, shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a
fine not exceeding level five or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months or to both such fine and
such imprisonment.
‘Section substituted by section 6 of Act 5 of 2003]
PART VI
USE AND DISCLOSURE OF PERSONAL INFORMATION BY P UBLIC B ODIES
36 Use of personal information
A public body may only use personal information—
(a) for the purpose for which that information was obtained or compiled, or for a use consistent with that
purpose; or
(b) if the person to whom the information relates has consented, in the prescribed manner, to such use.
[Paragraph amended by section 25 of Act 5 of 2003]
37 Disclosure for archival or historical purposes
The National Archives, or the archives of a public body, may disclose personal information to a third party
for the purpose of historical research or any other lawful purpose if—
(a) such disclosure would not result in an unreasonable invasion of a person’s personal privacy in terms of
this Act; or
(b) the information is about a person who has been deceased for thirty or more years.
[Section amended by section 25 of Act 5 of 2003]
PART VII
ZIMBABWE MEDIA COMMISSION
38 Establishment and composition of Zimbabwe Media Commission
(1) There is hereby established a commission to be known as the Zimbabwe Media Commission, which shall
be a body corporate capable of suing and being sued in its corporate name and, subject to this Act, of performing
all acts that bodies corporate may by law perform.
(2) The Commission shall consist of a chairperson and eight other members appointed by the President from
a list of not fewer than twelve nominees submitted by the Committee on Standing Rules and Orders.
(3) Persons appointed to the Commission must be chosen for their knowledge and experience in the press,
print or electronic media, or broadcasting.
[Section substituted by section 3 of Act 20 of 2007]
39 Functions of Zimbabwe Media Commission
(1) Subject to this Act, the functions of the Commission shall be —
(a) to uphold and develop the freedom of the press; and
(b) to promote and enforce good practice and ethics in the press, print and electronic media, and broadcasting; and
(c) to ensure that the people of Zimbabwe have equitable and wide access to information; and
(d) to ensure the equitable use and development of all indigenous languages spoken in Zimbabwe; and
(e) to comment on the implications of proposed legislation or programmes of public bodies on access to
information and protection of privacy; and
(f) to comment on the implications of automated systems for collection, storage, analysis or transfer of information or for access to information or protection of privacy; and
(g) to inform the public about this Act; and
(h) to engage in or commission research into anything affecting the achievement of the purposes of this Act;
and
(i) to conduct investigations in terms of Part IX to ensure compliance with the provisions of this Act; and
(j) to receive, evaluate for accreditation and consider applications for the accreditation of journalists; and
(k) to review the decisions of public bodies in terms of Part X; and
(l) to bring to the attention of the head of a public body any failure to meet the prescribed standards for fulfilling the duty to assist applicants; and
(m) to authorise a public body, at the request of its head, to disregard requests that would unreasonably interfere with the operations of the public body; and
(n) to monitor the mass media and raise user awareness of the mass media; and
(o) to register mass media in Zimbabwe; and