What’s New
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19 May 2016
OGP Sets Benchmarks for Turkish Rehabilitation
The Open Government Partnership Steering Committee has set a series of four tasks for the Turkish government to perform to avoid being designated as an “inactive” member. Despite having missed several key deadlines over several years, Turkey was given another chance. However, Turkey will be automatically designated “inactive” at the September Steering Committee meeting if it […]
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18 May 2016
India: Evidence Rebuts Attacks on RTI
By Anjali Bhardwaj and Amrita Johri The writers are members of the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information. Their article first appeared May 16 in The Indian Express with the subtitle, “MPs must not run down a law that promises a more informed citizenry.” The Right to Information (RTI) Act has undoubtedly been a […]
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18 May 2016
Bangladesh: A Good Law Gone to Waste?
By Dr. Shamsui Bari The writer is Chairman of Research Initiatives, Bangladesh (RIB). This article, subtitled “Right to Information Act 2009: The role of media,” first appeared in The Daily Star. Media’s power to shape public opinion is succinctly captured in a story from Peru, dating back to the 1990s. Alberto Fujimori was the president of […]
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18 May 2016
Transparency Needed for Sri Lanka’s Constitutional Council
By Kishali Pinto-Jayawardena The author is a Colombo based civil liberties advocate and a regular contributor to The Sunday Times where this column appeared May 15. In a notably pungent observation at the close of her mission visit to Sri Lanka this month, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers […]
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12 May 2016
Elected Philippines President Plans to Issue FOI Order
The man just elected to be president of the Philippines says he will immediately issue an executive order of freedom of information, according to reports in The Standard and The Inquirer. The presumptive president, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, said at a May 10 press conference that if Congress refuses to pass a FOI bill, […]
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12 May 2016
FOI Notes: Africa, FOI Research, South Africa, Open Data, Anti-Corruption, Way More
Africa: A World Bank blog reports, “African countries come together to address gaps in managing digital information for open government.” On April 22 and April 29, representatives from Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Sierre Leone, South Africa, and Tanzania met to discuss “an issue of mounting concern: managing records and information to support open […]
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11 May 2016
Sri Lankan Court Decision on RTI Legislation Analyzed
Analysis has continued on the Sri Lankan Supreme Court’s pronouncements on the draft right to information law, with the most detailed analysis saying the decision “held little surprises.” So wrote Kishali Pinto Jayawardene, a lawyer and human rights activist, who said: “In the main, the ruling did not pose formidable challenges to the basic integrity […]
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11 May 2016
Building and Empowering a Global Practitioners Community
By Nikhil Dey and Aruna Roy The authors lead Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), India. The following article, reprinted with permission, is among 18 articles commissioned by the Transparency and Accountability Initiative, a consortium of funders. The entire collection is here. Progress From its initial local struggles to the building of a national campaign—which ultimately fueled a broad-based people’s push for […]
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11 May 2016
Analytic Overview of Essays on Transparency and Accountability
By Thomas Carothers The author is Vice President for Studies, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Washington, D.C. The following article, reprinted with permission, sums up 18 articles commissioned by the Transparency and Accountability Initiative, a consortium of funders. References in this article are to the contributions by other authors. The entire collection is here. Second-Generation Guideposts Although the contributors […]
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11 May 2016
Namibian Official Promises July Introduction of ATI Bill
Namibian deputy minister of information Stanley Simataa has promised to propose an access to information bill in July, according to an article in The Namibian. The pledge came in a keynote address delivered on his behalf by Frans Nghitila, director of media relations in the information ministry, during the Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) […]
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11 May 2016
RTI and Citizens: Emerging Trends in Pakistan
By Zahid Abdullah The author is Program Manager for the Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives. This article appeared May 8 in The News. One of the core principles of Right to Information (RTI) legislation is that the process of filing information requests should be easy and cost-effective. The logic behind this principle is to facilitate […]
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5 May 2016
Sri Lanka Court Faults Five Minor Clauses in RTI Bill
Sri Lanka’s highest court has declared that five minor parts of a right to information bill are unconstitutional and would need a two-thirds majority in Parliament to become law, but alterations could allow passage on a majority vote. “The amendments suggested by the SC are mostly of technical nature and do not undermine the purpose […]
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5 May 2016
Canada Orders Fees Cut, Data Made More Open
The Canadian government has ordered several immediate access to information reforms while it holds a public consultation on a broader package. The Interim Directive on the Administration of the Access to Information Act “delivers on key commitments to make government more open and transparent,” according to the announcement. The Directive “sends a strong message across […]
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5 May 2016
Ghana President Avoids Mention of RTI Legislation
Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama in a World Press Freedom Day speech noted that public access to information is now a international development goal, but he did not commit to passing the slow-moving right to information bill in Ghana. Meanwhile, transparency supporters urged action on the long-pending bill. One legislator, however, has predicted that the […]
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5 May 2016
Zambian Minister Says Cabinet to Consider ATI Bill
A Zambian Cabinet committee “will soon deliberate on the content of the Access to Information (ATI) Bill, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services Chishimba Kambwili has said,” according to a May 3 Daily Mail report, and advocates for the bill are pushing for enactment. “The process towards the enactment of the Access to Information Bill […]
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5 May 2016
FOI Notes: Research, Press Freedom Day, Regional and Country News, More
International: A commissioned by the Transparency and Accountability Initiative and curated by Thomas Carothers of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace – “short, forward-looking think pieces by leading scholars and activists on the future of the transparency and accountability movement.” International: At a World Press Freedom Day conference more than 1,000 media practitioners and stakeholders, […]
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4 May 2016
Hallelujah: Wisdom Prevails in Australia
By Peter Timmins The author publishes the Open and Shut blog on FOI in Australia, where this article was posted May 3. From the Attorney General tonight: The Government has decided not to proceed with the new arrangements for privacy and Freedom of Information (FOI) regulation, including the proposed changes to the Office of the […]
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4 May 2016
Danish Pro-Access Majority Refrains From Using Power
By Staffan Dahllöf The author is a freelance journalist. There is now a majority in the Danish parliament for amending a much-criticised law on access to public information adopted in 2013. Yet this majority is not likely to take use of its possible power, due to different political strategies. Three of the critical parties – the […]
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4 May 2016
OGP Declares Azerbaijan Membership ‘Inactive’
The Open Government Partnership Steering Committee has voted 16-3 (with three abstentions) to make Azerbaijan an “inactive” member, agreeing with complaints that the government has created an environment inhospitable to civil society activity. An OGP press release said the Steering Committee May 4 “resolved that Azerbaijan will be regretfully designated as inactive in OGP, due to unresolved […]
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3 May 2016
South Africa Opposes OGP Sanction of Azerbaijan
The South African government has laid out its case for why the Open Government Partnership should not declare Azerbaijan an “inactive” member because of its adverse treatment of civil society organizations. South Africa also rebuked OGP colleagues for their handling of the matter. The 37-page document marked “Confidential” was not included among the documents released in advance […]