What’s New
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2 August 2013
FOI Notes: Employment, User Guide, Alliances
Employment: The African Freedom of Information Centre, a pan-African membership civil society organization and resource centre promoting the right of access to information, is seeking the services of a consultant “to lead the development of a strategic plan to guide its programmes and institutional development over the next four years.” The entire task is expected […]
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31 July 2013
Nigerian Judge Has It All Wrong
By Edetaen Ojo Ojo is Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda in Lagos, a former Chair of the Steering Committee of and a member of the Working Group of the African Platform on Access to Information (APAI).This article was originally published on the Media Rights Agenda website. In a recent ruling, his lordship, Justice Gabriel […]
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31 July 2013
Colonial Mindset Visible in RTI Responses
By Raja Muzaffar Bhat The author is an RTI / Social activist and the founder of J&K RTI movement. Reach him at muzaffar.rti@gmail.com. This article was originally published July 30 in Greater Kashmir. Background From the last nearly eight years I have been drafting applications under Right to Information Act (RTI) to seek information from different […]
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29 July 2013
Pakistan Activists Object to Draft RTI Ordinance in KP
Civil society groups are objecting that the proposed right to information ordinance in Pakistan’s province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was watered down. The Coalition on Right of Information (CRTI) and allies held a press conference July 24 recently to oppose the bill which was changed in early July by the Cabinet. CRTI coordinator Zahid Abddullah said […]
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29 July 2013
UK Supreme Court Upholds Request for Pay Structure
The U.K. Supreme Court ruled July 29 that information relating to South Lanarkshire Council’s staff pay structure should be disclosed. The judgment is the first considered by the Supreme Court under Scotland’s freedom of information law. The requester in 2010 sought details of the number of people placed at specific points on South Lanarkshire Council’s pay […]
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29 July 2013
Indian Committee Says RTI Should Cover Cricket Board
A special Indian committee constituted by the government has recommended that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) should be covered by the Right to Information Act if it wants to field the “Indian” cricket team. Retired Justice Mukul Mudgal, the chairman of a committee constituted to draft the Sports Development Bill 2013, […]
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29 July 2013
OGP Media Council Formed; SC Seeks Ambitious Goals
An Open Government Partnership “Media Council” is exploring how the OGP can connect better with the media, according to the minutes of a recent OGP Steering Committee meeting and a FreedomInfo.org interview with the Council chairman. The Media Council, which was formed with no fanfare, was one of many topics on the agenda at the July […]
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26 July 2013
Liberian Commissioner Orders Release of Asset Disclosures
Liberia’s information commissioner, in his first ruling, has ordered the nation’s Anti-Corruption Commission to release the asset disclosure statement of Cabinet ministers and their deputies. The records were sought by the Center for Media Studies and Peace Building (CEMESP) . Mark Bedo-Wla Freeman in his July 23 decision stated, “The asset declarations are part of efforts […]
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26 July 2013
Court Blocks CIC Hearing About Indian Cricket Board
A court order caused the Indian Central Information Commission to cancel a July 25 hearing on whether the Board of Control for Cricket in India should be declared a public authority subject to the Right to Information Act. The Madras High Court issued the order, according to a report by NDTV and another by ESPN. […]
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26 July 2013
Ghana Government Has Made Few Changes in RTI Draft Bill
The government of Ghana has made few substantive changes in a Right to Information bill from last year that is widely considered too weak by FOI advocates The bill was approved by the Cabinet June 6, but has yet to be made public. (See previous FreedomInfo.org report.) Officials say is still being worked on, according […]
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26 July 2013
Appeal Granted in Case Involving Prince Charles
Three British high court judges have allowed an appeal of a decision denying public access to letters from Prince Charles to government agencies. The Guardian newspaper has been seeking the letters for eight years. In July, the British High Court refused to overturn a government decision to block the disclosure of Prince Charles’ correspondence. (See previous […]
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26 July 2013
Spanish Committee Approves FOI Amendments in Private
The Spanish Parliament’s Constitutional Commission on July 25 approved amendments to the transparency law. The nonpublic session was boycotted by left of center parties, including the main opposition Socialist Party and the process came under fire from Access Info Europe. “At time of writing we don’t have a clear picture of exactly which amendments were […]
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26 July 2013
FOI Notes: Countries, Funding, Commentary,Technology
Canada: A book titled “Access in the Academy,” developed by the Freedom of Information and Privacy Association and Mike Larsen of Kwantlen Polytechnic University (Instructor, Dept. of Criminology) describes how researchers, students, and others in the higher education can make the most of FOI and ATI practices. FOIA Machine: Developers of an online tool called […]
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26 July 2013
Summer Reading: Will the Public Interest Test Prevail?
By Helen Darbishire Darbishire is Executive Director of Access Info Europe. For FOI Geeks interested in the application of the public interest test who also like a good quick read over the summer, there’s a recent decision that can compete with page-turning novels. There’s no sex, but we do learn about the intimate and very […]
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25 July 2013
First Expert Assessments Due Out in September From OGP
The first assessments by independent examiners of the national action plans by the founding eight members of the Open Government Partnership are on track for announcement in mid-September. These will be the first evaluations to emerge from the OGP Independent Review Mechanism (IRM). The IRM is a multi-step, multi-deadline evolving process. The impending issuance of […]
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24 July 2013
Indian RTI Supporters Object to Planned Amendments
A group of eminent citizens has objected to plans by the six major political parties to pass legislation exempting themselves from the Right to Information Act. A joint letter noted that the parties have not gone to court to challenge the June order of the Central Information Commission, but instead are making plans for a […]
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24 July 2013
Pro-FOI Coalition Wins Election in St. Helena
Candidates who made government transparency a central campaign promise have swept the election on the island of St. Helena. The winning coalition plans to pass a freedom of information bill. Several of the candidates, sworn in July 24, objected to being forced to swear secrecy oath required by the Constitution, according to reporting by journalist […]
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24 July 2013
Most Chinese Cities Rank Low on Fiscal Transparency
A university study has concluded that most Chinese cities have weak fiscal transparency, according to an article in China Daily. Eighty-four percent of the cities, or 243, scored below 100 on a 243 point scale, according to the study by the School of Public Policy and Management at Tsinghua University. It included four parts, with […]
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24 July 2013
Indian RTI activist Ends Hunger Strike in Goa
Indian RTI activist Rajan Ghate on July 22 ended his six day hunger strike following assurances from Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar over the appointment of state information commissioners. Ghate started his strike to demand that the state government appoint a Chief Information Commissioner as well as State Information Commissioners, posts unfilled for more than […]
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22 July 2013
Aquino Doesn’t Mention FOI Legislation in Major Speech
Despite a stress on fighting corruption, Philippines President Benigno Aquino did not mention pending freedom of information legislation in his annual State of the National address (Sona) July 22 Aquino talked for one hour and 44 minutes, with 88 applause breaks, and managing to mention 65 specific topics, according to one media count. Freedom of […]