Access to information language, modified on the last day of negotiations and almost deleted, was included in the long list of goals for sustainable development drafted by a United Nations Open Working Group (OWG).
The final language on access is:
16.10 ensure public access to information and protect freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements
Going into discussions July 18, the language said:
16.8 guarantee unfettered access to public information, in accordance with national legislation
The line is part of a multi-part Goal 16, informally known as the “freedoms” section. “It was a very close thing that Goal 16 made it at all,” commented one person who worked on the issue for a nongovernmental group advocating for its inclusion.
“The “freedoms” were cut out early on Thursday and it took a lot of work to get it back in,” the observer said. Section 16 doesn’t include media freedom, but it does address freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, freedom of association and access to information.
Goal 16 is one of 17 high-level topics in the draft Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) document that was negotiated last week by representatives from 30 governments who met for four days under the auspices of the United Nations in New York. The working group began working in January and this was its 13th and apparently final meeting.
The SDG goals begin with targeting eradication of poverty and hunger. Each section includes multiple subparts, 145 by one count. The “zero draft” now faces a series of other steps and continuing negotiation before eventually going before the UN General Assembly in September of 2015 for approval by world leaders. Options for financing the agenda are being worked on by a parallel Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing.
Positive Reaction by Article 19
In a comment provided to Freedominfo.org, Article 19’s senior counselor David Banisar wrote:
We are pleased that the members of the OWG recognised the importance of ensuring access to information in target 16.10. While the language is not perfect, it sets an important benchmark for the UN Secretary General and General Assembly to meet as the negotiations go forward in 2015. We are disappointed that specific mentions of freedom of expression, media, association and assembly have been limited but are grateful to the delegations that fought to ensure that the mention of protecting “fundamental freedoms” has been included to ensure that further discussions on the rights will be possible. We also welcome the important language on public participation and access to ICTs that has been adopted. These areas are crucial for promoting development.
Full Text of Goal 16Below is the text of Goal 16. The full document is here.
Proposed Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
16.1 significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere
16.2 end abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence and torture against children
16.3 promote the rule of law at the national and international levels, and ensure equal access to justice for all
16.4 by 2030 significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flows, strengthen recovery and return of stolen assets, and combat all forms of organized crime
16.5 substantially reduce corruption and bribery in all its forms
16.6 develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels
16.7 ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels
16.8 broaden and strengthen the participation of developing countries in the institutions of global governance
16.9 by 2030 provide legal identity for all including birth registration
16.10 ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements
16.a strengthen relevant national institutions, including through international cooperation, for building capacities at all levels, in particular in developing countries, for preventing violence and combating terrorism and crime
16.b promote and enforce non-discriminatory laws and policies for sustainable development
Exercise Criticized
The SDGs are intended to replace the 2000 eight-point UN Millennium Development Goals that expire in 2015. Early reactions included some strong criticisms.
“They are a very big container of verbal fudge,” William Easterly, a former World Bank economist and co-director of New York University’s Development Research Institute, was quoted by George Russell as saying by Fox News. Fox described Easterly as “a longstanding critic of “top-down” government and U.N.-led efforts to lift the world’s billions of poor people out of misery.”
A report on the effort by Thalif Deen in Inter Press Service quoted Jens Martens, director of the Global Policy Forum, criticizing proposed as inadequate.
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