News
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24 May 2005
Latest Analysis of India’s New Right to Information Law
"Good, Bad, and Ugly (maybe)" says Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative UPDATE – 25 JUNE 2005 CHRI Conference Report Effective Implementation: Preparing to Operationalise the Right to Information Act, 2005 After a number of false starts and even one Act which was on the books but never came into force, it is with much excitement that […]
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9 May 2005
Article 19 Reports on Freedom of Information in Armenia, Azerbaijan, and 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 […]
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21 February 2005
Information Commissioners Meet in Cancún
3rd Annual Conference Draws Attendees from 50 Countries Today, freedom of information advocates and government officials who implement access laws around the world gathered in Cancún, Mexico for the 3rd annual International Conference of Information Commissioners, hosted by Mexico’s own commission (IFAI – Instituto Federal de Acceso a la Información Pública). The Mexican organizers reached […]
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7 February 2005
Report on free expression in Tajikistan shows situation worsened for media in 2004
SOURCE: National Association of Independent Mass Media in Tajikistan (NANSMIT), Press Release (7 February 2005) “Access to information, which is also guaranteed under Tajik law, is not protected in practice. In fact, the most common infringement of journalists’ rights is the restriction of access to information. Violations may take the form of direct denial of […]
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10 December 2004
Information Requests Reveal Destruction of Records by Administrative Agencies in Japan
Information Clearinghouse Japan, a non-profit organization, conducted an investigation based on information requests filed under the Japanese public information disclosure law regarding the destruction of official records before that law came into effect in March 2001. The records showed that at least ten agencies significantly increased their disposal of documents during fiscal year 2000, some […]
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5 November 2004
Serbian Parliament Adopts Access Law
The Serbian National Assembly, in its Plenary Session on November 2, 2004, adopted the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance. The Law will enter into force eight days after its publication in the Official Gazette of Serbia. The Law establishes the right of free access to information in the possession of public […]
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16 June 2004
Bulgaria’s Access to Information Program: Fighting for Transparency during the Democratic Transition
Changes in the information regime in Bulgaria have been slow and incremental since the fall of the communists in 1989. But the work of the Access to Information Programme, an NGO that has been at the forefront of the freedom of information movement in that country, has succeeded in opening up what was once one […]
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20 May 2004
Ecuador Enacts ‘Transparency and Access to Information Law’
By Carlos Osorio and Katherine Costar With refreshing democratic language, the new Ecuadorian Transparency and Access to Information Law establishes that "[a]ccess to information is a right of the person guaranteed by the State" and requires that government agencies proactively publish functional, operational and financial information. At the same time, a number of inconsistencies within […]
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14 May 2004
INDIA: The Largest Democratic Election in Human History
By Vivek Ramkumar The largest democratic election in human history ended yesterday in India. Most of the headlines today focused on the horse race, that is, the surprising defeat of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the return to power of the Congress Party. But the election process itself deserves attention, both for its extraordinary […]
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20 April 2004
Shanghai Advances the Cause of Open Government Information in China
While the Chinese State Council mulls over a draft of China’s first freedom of information legislation, the bustling metropolis of Shanghai, home to some 16 million people, adopted China’s first provincial-level open information legislation on January 20, 2004. The Provisions of Shanghai Municipality on Open Government Information (the Shanghai Provisions) represent the most comprehensive framework […]
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23 February 2004
ARMENIA: Amendments threaten to undermine FOI law
Freedom of Information Civic Initiative Yerevan, 19.02.2004 STATEMENT 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 […]
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20 February 2004
Armenia: Amendments Undermine FOI Law
The Freedom of Information Civic Initiative issued 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 […]
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7 February 2004
Jamaicans Using Access to Information Act
The Jamaica Observer reports that Jamaica’s landmark Access to Information Act has been getting plenty of use since it went into effect January 5. “Commendably, media houses are among the earliest applicants for official documents,” said information minister, Burchell Whiteman, noting that 56 applications were received in the first 24 days of the act. Whiteman, […]
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16 January 2004
JAPAN: Assembly Chief Leaks Requester’s Data
The Asahi Shimbun (Japan) reports on a Nagano man, who applied for the release of travel data on three assembly members who had gone on business trips using public funds, and found that government officials leaked his personal data to the very people he was requesting information on. The leaked data included the man’s name, […]
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22 November 2003
THAILAND: Anti-graft Agency Exempt from Official Information Act?
The Bangkok Post reports that the Official Information Commission will seek a Constitution Court ruling on whether the anti-graft agency was exempt from article 40 of the Official Information Act making it disclose state information. Rongpol Charoenphan, Prime Minister’s Office’s deputy permanent secretary, said the meeting, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Visanu Krue-ngam, discussed the […]
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12 November 2003
JAPAN: Supreme Court Overturns Disclosure Ruling
The Asahi Shimbun (Japan) reports that the Supreme Court has overturned a high court decision ordering the disclosure of the names and titles of private citizens wined and dined by the Osaka municipal government in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The case involves a June 1992 request by the citizens group Mihariban for records […]
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11 November 2003
PHILIPPINES: Court Workers Sing, Dance For Transparency
SunStar Network (Philippines) reports that court employees, instead of chanting protest lines, sang old-time favorites and danced to boogey tunes as they demanded transparency in the disbursement of the Judiciary Development Fund (JDF). Wearing red shirts or red armbands, the court employees called for a salary increase and transparency in the disbursement of the Judiciary […]
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1 November 2003
JAMAICA: Senate Passes Access to Information Bill
The Jamaica Observer reports that the Senate has finally passed The Access to Information Amendment Bill and the accompanying regulations after several weeks of debate fueled by the opposition. In the end, the modified Bill was passed unanimously. The Act, which is aimed at bringing greater transparency to Government by giving the public access to […]
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4 October 2003
JAMAICA: More Delays on Access to Information
The Jamaica Gleaner reports that the Jamaican Senate will not be debating the amendment to the Access to Information Act until the regulations governing its long-awaited implementation have been presented. The amendment, entitled the Access to Information Amendment Act 2003, was however tabled in the Upper House yesterday (October 3). Last week the Government announced […]
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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. The text of the law can be found here.