Commentary/US: “Why Critics of Transparency Are Wrong,” an article by Gary D. Bass, Danielle Brian and Norman Eisen. The authors write: “In this paper, we respond to the principal myths about transparency that are cropping up in books, academic journals and newspapers across the country, and demonstrate the enduring value of open government. In fact, transparency is actually one of the areas today where Congress can find common ground to help make government work better. To be clear, we are not transparency absolutists. We believe that transparency should be balanced with the appropriate secrecy that government needs to function — but as we demonstrate below, that balance is already being struck. When one looks beyond the rhetoric at the actual facts of government operations, there is already more than enough of the secrecy the critics call for. If anything, the balance tips too far in that direction, and more transparency is needed, not less.”
Commentary/UK: “Should universities be exempt from the FoI Act? : Chris Cobb says the Freedom of Information Act leads to wasted time and money and the undermining of competitive practices… Maurice Frankel contends that the openness and accountability ushered in by the FoI Act boosts confidence in the sector.
Pakistan: The Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives had created a new section on its web site, ‘Information Requests: Peculiar Responses from Public Bodies and Landmark Decisions of Appellate Bodies/Courts’ to compile decisions and responses of public bodies for RTI activists and researchers.
United States: A White House blog post announces, “A team across the government is now working side-by-side with civil society organizations to deliver the first U.S. Public Participation Playbook, dedicated to providing best practices for how agencies can better design public participation programs, and suggested performance metrics for evaluating their effectiveness.”
Research: Paper are being invited for the National Academy of Public Administration’s (NAPA) 14th Annual Social Equity Leadership Conference to be hosted by Tennessee State. The theme of the 2015 Annual Meeting is Leveraging Technology and Data to Promote Social Equity. Abstracts of up to 250 words to be submitted by Jan.15.
India: Dev Agarwal, who celebrated his first birthday this Children’s Day, has filed an application under the Right to Information Act with the Prime Minister’s Office. His query: what’s the official name of our country? Is it India, Bharat, Hinduism or Aryavart? Is it possible for a country to have multiple names? See Times of India article.
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