News
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20 June 2011
Guyana Government Tables Long-Promised FOI Bill
The Guyana government has proposed a long-promised freedom of information bill in the National Assembly. The bill was referred a special select committee, according to media accounts such as one in Demerara Waves. Demerara Waves reported: Friday’s introduction was the first time the opposition parties were seeing the bill and AFC’s Sheila Holder said they […]
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20 June 2011
Montenegro Group Seeks Documents on Energy Cable
A nongovernmental organization in Montenegro is asking the government to comply with an Administrative Court ruling and release an agreement dealing with a planned undersea energy cable linking Montenegro to Italy. The Network for Affirmation of NGC Sector (MANS) is seeking an agreement that was signed in November 2010 by representatives of Montenegro’s Prenos (CGEPS), […]
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17 June 2011
Mongolian Parliament OKs Transparency Legislation
The Parliament of Mongolia June 16 approved the Law on Information Transparency and Right and Freedom to Access Information. “We believe that the new law will help us to consolidate democracy, freedom of expression and human rights in Mongolia,” commented Naranjargal Khashkhuu,President of Globe International. Passage of the law was supported by Globe International and […]
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17 June 2011
Rousseff Does About-Face on Brazil FOI Legislation
By Greg Michener Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has reversed her support for expedited passage of a Brazilian freedom of information law this week, ceding to senators’ desire to reappraise the law and include weakening amendments. The proposed changes aim to eliminate time limits on how long information can be classified as secret and held from […]
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17 June 2011
Pakistani Group Seeks Appointment of Ombudsman
The Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI) has called for the appointment of the Federal Ombudsman in Pakistan, pointing out that the position has been vacant since the end of October 2010. The Office of the Federal Ombudsman was established as the result of President’s order 1 of 1983, CPDI noted, with the purpose […]
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17 June 2011
Jamaican Panel Recommends Ways to Improve Access Law
The Jamaican Parliament has recently passed the report of the committee that reviewed the Access to Information Act, reports Carolyn Gomes, chairperson of the ATI Advisory Stakeholders Committee. “This report recommends significant strengthening of the provisions of our Act, including the creation of a statutory body, the Access to Information Unit, which is to be […]
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17 June 2011
Senegal Leaders Support Passing Information Law
Key figures in Senegal’s government have committed to passing an access to information law, according the Committee on Access to Information in Senegal. Members of the Senate and National Assembly, and the minister of Communication, indicated their support following a June 8 seminar organized by ARTICLE 19 and the Forum Civil, in partnership with the […]
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17 June 2011
Indian Cabinet Exempts Bureau of Investigation
The Indian Cabinet June 9 decided to exempt the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) from the Right to Information Act, according to news reports, but official confirmation has not been forthcoming. The exemption was requested by the CBI, arguing that its inclusion under the RTI made it difficult to share information and obtain information,” according […]
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17 June 2011
Uganda Issues Regulation to Implement Access Statute
Uganda has issued long-awaited regulations to govern the 2005 Access to Information Act. The regulations had been approved in May, but publication was delayed. (See previous Freedominfo.org report.) The absence of regulations constrained implementation of the law and their issuance was a key demand of groups including the Africa Freedom of Information Centre. The AFIC is a pan-African […]
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14 June 2011
Nigeria Law One of the Best Says Advocate Edetaen Ojo
The freedom of information bill that finally emerged in Nigeria is one of the best in the world, according to a key figure in the successful campaign for a FOI law in Nigeria. Edetaen Ojo, Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda, gave an extensive interview to The Independent with Emma Maduabuchi, Assistant Features Editor. Ojo […]
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13 June 2011
Governor Proposes FOI Law for Nigerian State of Ekiti
The Nigerian state of Ekiti governor, Kayode Fayemi, has sent a freedom of information bill to the State Assembly. Passage would make Ekiti the first state to pass a FOI law in the wake of a new national law being approved, according to a report by Davidson Iriekpen and Toba Suleiman in This Day. According […]
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13 June 2011
OAS Approves Resolutions on Access to Information, Truth
The General Assembly of the Organization of American States, meeting in El Salvador June 5-7, approved resolutions on access to public information, protection of personal data, access to the truth about past human rights violations, and many other topics. (See OAS press release and links to the declaration in English and Spanish.) While recalling past […]
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13 June 2011
Rwanda Cabinet Okays Access to Information Bill
The Rwandan Cabinet June 1 approved an Access to Information bill and supporters are hoping for it to be signed into law in late September. ARTICLE 19 urged the Rwandan Parliament to pass the bill. “The Rwandan Government’s adoption of the Access to Information Bill is a clear acknowledgement of the key role free flow […]
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10 June 2011
EU Court Rules Against Parliamentary Secrecy
The General Court of the European Union June 7 ruled that the European Parliament should not have denied access to a sensitive report on allowances paid to parliamentarians. The case was brought by Irish lawyer, Ciarán Toland, who sought access to a 2006 internal audit of the Parliamentary Assistance Allowance, known as the “Galvin Report.” […]
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10 June 2011
Date to Vote on Secrecy Bill in South Africa Postponed
The ruling African National Congress has delayed a planned June 24 vote in Parliament on the proposed Protection of Information Bill in the face of widening opposition. As reported by Brendan Boyle in The Times: The ANC has buckled to pressure from alliance partners and a former cabinet minister and has extended the deadline for […]
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10 June 2011
U.S. to Host July Meeting of Open Government Effort
The United States on July 12 will host a meeting of the now nine-nation Open Government Partnership, at which time the coalition is expected to reveal more about the effort. Maria Otero, Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs, is the primary U.S. representative for the coalition, announced by President Obama last year (See previous FreedomInfo.org […]
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10 June 2011
FOI Notes: Internet, Open Data, Local Transparency
Internet: “While the Internet is empowering individuals more than ever, there is an increase globally in content filtering and censorship,” according to a new UNESCO publication, “Freedom of Connection – Freedom of Expression: The Changing Legal and Regulatory Ecology Shaping the Internet.” Professor William Dutton, Director of Oxford Internet Institute, is the main author. “Through […]
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10 June 2011
Guatemala Releases Report on National Police History
The National Security Archives June 8 posted on its website a copy of the report, “From Silence to Memory: Revelations of the Historical Archive of the National Police” (Del Silencio a la Memoria: Revelaciones del Archivo Histórico de la Policía Nacional), about the role of the Guatemalan police. The report was officially released June 7 […]
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10 June 2011
Sri Lanka Party Leaders Reject RTI Proposal
The Sri Lankan government has rejected a proposed right to information law, again saying it could draft a better bill, according to a report in The Nation. United National Party (UNP) senior Deputy Leader Karu Jayasuriya, who had proposed the bill, subsequently said he would take the issue to the people at the grassroots level, […]
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3 June 2011
Nigerian President Signs Freedom of Information Bill
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has signed a freedom information bill. The president’s signature May 28 came 11 years after a FoI bill was first submitted to Nigeria’s 4th National Assembly in 1999. A bill was passed by both chambers in the first quarter of 2007, but was vetoed by President Olusegun Obasanjo. The newly enacted […]