What’s New
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11 October 2012
FOI Notes: Video, Research, UK Guides, Books
Video: See a presentation by Associated Press investigative journalist Martha Mendoza on the importance of government transparency. “Drawing on her own experience employing the U.S.’s FOIA, and similar international laws, Mendoza demonstrated how latent information, made available publicly and contextualized, can affect change from the smallest municipal government to the highest levels of international institutions,” according […]
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8 October 2012
Chinese Ministries More Transparent, Study Says
Chinese ministries are increasingly transparent, according to a new report by the Center for Public Participation Studies and Supports at Peking University. The 42 central government departments studied scored an average 60.4 points out of 100, up from 51.2 points in 2010 and 46.1 points in 2009. Only four departments saw their scores drop. “The […]
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8 October 2012
Canada to Establish Pilot Portal for Making Requests
The Canadian government has announced plans to create an online portal for citizens to file freedom of information requests to three agencies. The portal will route requests to the proper department, allow fees to be paid electronically, and track action on the request, according to Canadian Press report. The first departments to participate will be […]
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8 October 2012
U.S. Supreme Court to Consider FOI Case
The Supreme Court of the United States Oct. 5 said it will consider whether states can keep persons for other states from using their freedom of information laws. The case involves the state of Virginia, which denied the use of the law to Mark J. McBurney of Rhode Island and Roger W. Hurlbert of California. […]
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8 October 2012
The Fight For Information In Italy
By Alessia Cerantola This article was published Sept. 27, 2012, by the European Journalism Centre. In many countries, access to public information is guaranteed by law. Often at the constitutional level. Not in Italy. Two-year Waiting Period When Focus magazine decided to release a special issue on the quality of Italian hospitals, its journalists knew […]
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8 October 2012
Broader issues arising from report on FOI processing at Immigration
By Peter Timmins This article is reprinted with permission from Open and Shut, Timmins’ blog on transparency and privacy in Australia, where it was published on Oct. 2. The Office of Australian Information Commissioner report on its own motion investigation into delays in processing “non-routine” freedom of information requests in the Department of Immigration and […]
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8 October 2012
New Reports in U.S. Detail FOIA Numbers; Spark Debate
By Harry Hammitt Hammitt’s article appeared in the latest issue of his journal on FOI lega developments in the U.S. and Canada, Access Reports. The Justice Department’s Office of Information Policy published its summary of the 2011 Chief FOIA Officers Reports Aug. 7 and followed that up with its summary of the2011 Annual FOIA Reports […]
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5 October 2012
Parties Agree to Amend Danish Access Statute
Denmark will be placing some new limits on access to information and also making some expansions as the result of a deal among the major political parties announced Oct. 3, according to media accounts. “The revision of the law, offentlighedsloven, has been ten years in the making, and was agreed upon on Wednesday between the […]
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5 October 2012
ATI Legislation Shows Signs of Life in Lebanon
Access to information legislation for Lebanon seems to getting more attention in the parliament and the bill’s advocates are scheduled to meet with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri Oct. 8. Debate on ATI was held Oct. 3 in Parliament, according to an article in The Daily Star. An agreement was reached that a subcommittee will be […]
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5 October 2012
New Ghana President Backs RTI Bill; Supporters March
Ghana’s new president has pledged that the Right to Information Bill will become law. The promise of President John Dramani Mahama came as a new report documented the difficulty of obtaining government information and as the bill’s supporters continued to campaign for its passage. Events and marches were held in cities around the country on […]
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5 October 2012
Plans Made to Promote FOI in Francophone African Nations
Transparency activists have laid plans for advancing freedom of information in five francophone countries of West Africa — Guinea, Niger, Benin, Cote D’Ivoire and Senegal. In Guinea, where the law is passed but not yet operational, plans were made to press for “speedy publication,” along with efforts to build capacity to use it. For Niger, the top […]
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5 October 2012
FOI Notes: Photos, Hubs, Jobs, Cases, Reports
Photo Contest: Winners were announced for the photo contest organised by FOIAnet (the Freedom of Information Advocates Network). There were over 120 entries. A total of 1,000 euros will be awarded to the winners.You can see the photos online here: http://bit.ly/2012FOIAPhotos The winners are: 1st place. Photo: “The other access” by Ranaivosoa Tolojanahary from Madagascar. […]
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5 October 2012
UK to Allow Access to Government Emails
The United Kingdom will require the disclosure of emails and text messages written by government officials. The move was signaled recently and will be described in new government guidance, according to reports in The Independent and on the BBC. A letter from the Department for Education indicates that it will withdraw objections made over the […]
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5 October 2012
OpenGovStandards Issues Draft Standards/Principles
The recently begun effort to draft open government standards has issued a draft document. Open Government Standards is a civil society initiative coordinated by Access Info Europe (See previous FreedomInfo.org report.) The initiative begun in August is now seeking public comments on the draft standards. Draft Text DRAFT Open Government Standards/Principles (You can participate by […]
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5 October 2012
Mozambican Groups Urge Parliament to Take Up RTI
Mozambican civil society organizations have again asked parliament to debate on a freedom of information bill. The Mozambican chapter the Media Institute of Southern Africa and other groups sent a letter to Assembly chairperson Veroniva Macamo saying a FOI act “will allow the state to bring the voice of the people into development processes, opening […]
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1 October 2012
Three Additions to My Open Government Plea
By Stanley Tromp The following article reprinted from The Tyee supplements a previous article by Tromp, who is FOI caucus co-ordinator of the Canadian Association of Journalists. Watching a panel at recent B.C. Information Summit changed my mind on three points discussed in my Tyee essay last week. On Sept. 17, The Tyee posted […]
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1 October 2012
Groups Update Comparative Ratings for Access Laws
The Access Info Europe and the Centre for Law and Democracy on Oct. 1 issued updated ratings for the legal frameworks governing access to information in 92 countries. Serbia retained its top ranking, with 135 points out of a possible total of 150, while Austria was in bottom place, with 39 points. AIE and CLD […]
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1 October 2012
Nigerian Group Urges More Commitment to FOI Law
The Right to Know coalition in Nigeria has called “for greater commitment” by the government to the provisions of the new freedom of information law. “R2K notes with great concern that 18 months after the enactment of the FOI Act there is no official gazetted copy of the Law. Worse still, public institutions are yet […]
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1 October 2012
Federal Government Ranks Badly in Canadian Audit
The Canadian national government is “stuck in a rut of delays” when it comes to responding to freedom of information requests, according to the author of the annual audit by Newspapers Canada, issued Sept. 24 at the Sunshine Summit in Calgary. “Municipalities continue to perform fastest in the audit, easily outpacing the senior levels of […]
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1 October 2012
Uruguay Group Launches Website for Requesters
The Center for Archives and Access to Public Information (CAINFO) in Uruguay has created a website for the filing of information requests. The portal “allows access to order public information quickly and easily, facilitating the use of this right to all citizens,” according to the nonprofit organization, founded in 2009. The effort is the result […]