The
Law
on Freedom of Information was unanimously approved by
the Parliament on 23 September 2003 and went into force
in November 2003.(1) The law allows any
citizen to demand information from state and local bodies,
state offices, organizations financed by the state budget,
private organizations of public importance and state officials.
Bodies must normally provide the information in five days.
Oral requests are required to be responded to immediately.
•
Undernourished people (% of total population),
2000/03: 34
•
Population with sustainable access to an improved
water source (%), 2002: 92
Source:
UN Development Program, Human Development Reports
Data
There are mandatory exemptions
for information that contains state, official bank or trade
secrets, infringes the privacy of a person, contains pre-investigative
data, discloses data that needs to be protected for a professional
activity such as privilege, or infringes copyright or intellectual
property rights. Information cannot be withheld if it involves
urgent cases that threaten public security and health or
national disasters and their aftermaths, presents the overall
economic, environmental, health trade and culture situation
of Armenia, or if withholding the information will have
a negative impact on the implementation of state programs
related to socio-economic, scientific, spiritual and cultural
development.
Appeals can be made to the
Human
Rights Ombudsman.(2) Appeals can also
be made to a court. There have been a number of court cases
on access to information.(3)
Public bodies must appoint an official responsible for the
law. They must also publish information yearly relating
to the activities and services, budget, forms, lists of
personnel (including education and salary), recruitment
procedures, lists of information, program of public events,
and information on the use of the Act. If the body maintains
an official web site, then it must publish the information
on the site.
After two years, the government
has not adopted regulations on procedures for supplying
information and for storing and indexing of information
and not all bodies have appointed information officials.
The Freedom of Information Center states there are significant
social and administrative problems starting with a general
ignorance of the law by officials and citizens. Other problems
are a continuation of secrecy practices started in the Soviet
period, a lack of citizen participation and a general mistrust
in the judicial system.(4) Many bodies
deny requests without using legal grounds, refuse to respond
to requests, and demand reasons for the request, which is
prohibited by the law. A 2004 study by Article 19 and groups
in Armenia found that most journalists and public officials
were aware of the law. However, 57 percent of the journalists
said that officials had given them false information. The
lack of regulations was also cited as a major hindrance.(5)
In her 2004 report the Ombudsman stated that "there
is a problem with central and local authorities, at all
levels, complying with the legally-prescribed procedure
on the provision of information. There is a widespread practice
of groundlessly refusing to provide information to individuals
or NGOs."(6) She also noted that some
bodies such as the Yerevan Mayor's Office were continuing
to deny information even after a court order to release
the information and that bodies "arbitrarily"
interpreted "notions of 'commercial secrecy' or 'personal
data'."
The government committed
to improve public access to information as a part of its
2003 anti-corruption strategy. The OECD's Anti-Corruption
Network for Transition Economies recommended in January
2004 that the government improve the access and response
procedures as part of that strategy.(7)
Another review by the OECD in 2005 recommended that the
government should "consider establishing an office
of an Information Commissioner to receive appeals under
the Law on Access to Information; limit discretion of officials
and the scope of information that could be withheld; enhance
cooperation with civil society."(8)
In 2004, the government proposed
amendments to the law that would have expanded exemptions
but also broadened the scope of the law to cover many private
bodies. The amendments were strongly objected to and were
not adopted.
The 1996 Law on State and
Official Secrets sets rules on the classification and protection
of information relating to military and foreign relations.(9)
It creates three categories of classification: "Of
Special Importance", Top Secret and Secret. Information
that is classified as "Of Special Importance"
or Top Secret is a state secret and can be classified for
thirty years. Secret information can be classified for ten
years. Disclosing secrets or breaking rules on handling
of state secrets is punishable under Article 306 and 307
of the Criminal Code.
Armenia signed the Aarhus
Convention in June 1998 and ratified it in August 2001.(10)
No legislation implementing it has been adopted. The Law
on Protection of the Population in Emergencies requires
that authorities notify the public of major emergencies.
The Article 19 survey of public officials found that only
17.5 percent of them were aware of the Convention.
The Law on Personal Data
provides for the right of citizens to obtain personal information
about themselves from public or private bodies.(11)
They can also demand that incorrect information be corrected.
Appeal is to a court.
9
May 2005 Article
19 Reports on Freedom of Information in Armenia, Azerbaijan,
Georgia
A
report from London-based NGO Article 19 on freedom of information
legislation and its impact on the news media in Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Georgia, finds that problems with implementation,
state secrets legislation, and a Soviet-style predilection
for excessive secrecy have created "the environment
for arbitrary refusals, manipulation of information, and,
in extreme cases, even release of false information by officials."
20
February 2004
Armenia: Amendments Undermine FOI
Law The
Freedom of Information Civic Initiativeissued a public statement suggesting that the proposed
amendments to the Armenian Law on Freedom of Information
will undermine the right of access to information if adopted
by the Armenian parliament. The amendments, to the FOI law
adopted in September 2003, limit the information which should
be made available under the law and provide greater scope
for exemptions and classification of information through
other laws which could override the FOI law.
"The
proposed changes pose a serious threat to government transparency
and anti-corruption initiatives in Armenia," commented
Shushan Doydoyan on behalf of the Freedom of Information
Civic Initiative, which is calling for the Government to
withdraw the amendments.
23
September 2003
Armenian Parliament Adopts FOI Law
The
Association
of Investigative Journalists of Armenia reports that
the Armenian Freedom of Information Law has been adopted
by the National Parliament today with all 100 NP's voting
in support of the law.
4.
Mavvel Badalyan, Implementation of the Freedom of Information
Law in Armenia. OSCE Second South Caucasus Media Conference,
November 2005.
5.
Article 19, Freedom of Information and the Media in
Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, February 2004.
6.
Annual Report - Activities of the Republic of Armenia's
Human Rights Defender, and on Violations of Human Rights
and Fundamental Freedoms in Armenia During 2004.
7.
Anti-Corruption Network for Transition Economies, Regional
Anti-Corruption Action Plan for Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia,
the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan
and Ukraine: Armenia - Summary of assessment and recommendations,
18 June 2004.
8.
OECD, Fighting Corruption in Transition Economies: Armenia,
2005.
"In
2003, the Government adopted the Law on Freedom
of Information, which provides for access to information
as well as its dissemination and transparency;
however, the law was rarely followed, and most
journalists and officials remained unaware of
its provisions."
World
Bank, Governance Matters IV: New Data, New Challenges
By Daniel Kaufmann, Aart Kraay, and
Massimo Mastruzzi
1) Voice and Accountability: -0.66
2) Political Instability and Violence: -0.51
3) Government Effectiveness: -0.34
4) Regulatory Burden: 0.05
5) Rule of Law: -0.58
6) Control of Corruption: -0.53
