Latest Features
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25 February 2013
Japan Needs Dose of Cameron’s Transparency Medicine
By Joel Rheuben Rheuben is an Australian lawyer resident in Japan. He was previously an associate in the Tokyo office of Herbert Smith Freehills, and is currently pursuing postgraduate studies in law at the University of Tokyo. As recently reported on FreedomInfo.org, UK Prime Minister David Cameron will stress commitment to transparency as a goal for this […]
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8 February 2013
Roadmap Developed During Conference in China on Government Transparency
(The following report is from the Carter Center.) Peking University Law School and the Carter Center jointly hosted a conference on December 12-13, 2012, entitled “Government Transparency and Innovations: Achievements, Challenges, and the Way Forward,” in order to consolidate knowledge about China’s achievements and progress in this area, and to consider next steps in overcoming […]
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14 January 2013
It’s Time for Transparency in New South Wales, Australia
By Sean Nicholls Nicholls is the State Political Editor for the Sydney Morning Herald, where this article appeared on Jan. 12. (Reprinted with permission.) Before the 2011 state election, Barry O’Farrell’s then opposition announced a lofty and noble ambition if it took power. As part of an unfolding campaign manifesto, the Coalition promised to ”pursue […]
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4 January 2013
Gergana Jouleva Offers Perspective on the Global Index Concept
By Gergana Jouleva Jouleva is Executive Director of the Access to Information Programme in Bulgaria. This article was published Dec. 12 in the AIP Monthly FOI Newsletter. (And in Bulgarian) Sheila Coronel’s report “Measuring Openness: A survey of transparency ratings and the prospects for a global index” was recently released.[1] Freedom of Information Advocates were […]
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6 December 2012
South Africa: What is the Protection of State Information Bill?
By Nelago Amadhila Amadhila is a political analyst with the consulting firm Political Analysis South Africa, which published this synopsis on Dec. 6. Reprinted with permission. The ANC drove final amendments to the Protection of State Information Bill through the National Council of Provinces on Thursday 29 November 2012. The amended bill was adopted by […]
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3 December 2012
Liberia: Freedom of Information Act and Executive Order 38
By Lamii Kpargoi Kpargoi is the Program Director of the Liberian Media Center (LMC). He is also a Liberian lawyer and political watcher. He lives and works in Monrovia and can be reached at lkpargoi@yahoo.com. This article first appeared in The News on Nov. 30 In recent weeks the rumor mill in Liberia, especially Monrovia […]
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19 November 2012
Global RTI Index: Study’s Goals Clarified
By Sheila Coronel Coronel is the Toni Stabile Professor of Professional Practice, and Director, Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism, Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University Helen Darbishire and Toby Mendel make interesting points but seem to misunderstand the intent of my paper, “Measuring Openness: A Survey of Transparency Ratings and the Prospects for a Global Index.” […]
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9 November 2012
Measuring Openness: Darbishire, Mendel Comment on Coronel Article
By Helen Darbishire and Toby Mendel Darbishire is Executive Director, Access Info Europe, and Mendel is Executive Director, Centre for Law and Democracy Sheila Coronel’s paper, Measuring Openness: A Survey of Transparency Ratings and the Prospects for a Global Index, is the first serious piece of research about the systems for assessing government openness which […]
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9 November 2012
Japan’s Nuclear Power Plants and Information Disclosure
By Lawrence Repeta Repeta teaches law at Meiji University and is a regular FreedomInfo.org contributor. The following report on a seminar includes information one speaker’s proposal that the Tokyo Electric Company, which operates several major nuclear power plants, be covered by Japan’s information disclosure law. He writes: The political stalemate described in my post of […]
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30 October 2012
Measuring Openness: A survey of transparency ratings and the prospects for a global index
By Sheila S. Coronel This report by Columbia University journalism professor Coronel was supported by the Open Society Foundations, Right to Information Fund. We are in the midst of an explosion in the measurement of government openness and the accessibility of information to the public. This is due largely to the growing interest worldwide in […]
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29 October 2012
Making Government Kiosks Hubs for RTI
By Osama Manzar Osama Manzar is founder-director of Digital Empowerment Foundation and chairman of the Manthan Award. He is a member of the working group for Internet proliferation and governance, ministry of communications and information technology. Follow him on Twitter @osamamanzar. There is only one way India can become a leading country in the 21st […]
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24 October 2012
Emphasis on Open Data Overshadows Access Problems in Canada
By Ken Rubin Rubin’s article first appeared Oct. 22 in Hill Times and is reprinted with permission. Rubin’s website is subtitled, “Canada’s Information Warrier.” Treasury Board Minister Tony Clement is quite happy these days to boast in Parliament and in news releases about bright “open data” prospects while ignoring the increasing “closed records” secrecy practices […]
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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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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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19 September 2012
Open Government? The Dangerous Distraction of Faux Transparency
By Stanley Tromp Tromp is FOI caucus coordinator of the Canadian Association of Journalists. This article first appeared Sept. 17 in The Tyee and is reprinted with permission. The original subtitle was: “While officials disgorge data sets and tweet away, citizens still lack muscle to compel the state to release records.” For citizens, the vital […]
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7 September 2012
Russian FOI Foundation Resists Registration as a Foreign Agent
By Nate Jones Jones is the Freedom of Information Coordinator at the National Security Archive who is also currently working with the Freedom of Information Foundation in Saint Petersburg, Russia. According to the Russian federal law 121-FZ, “On the Regulation of Noncommercial Organizations Acting as Foreign Agents,” Russian noncommercial organizations funded from abroad that engage […]
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23 August 2012
R2K: two years later, crunch-time on the Secrecy Bill
This statement was issued Aug. 24 by the South African Right to Know campaign. It summarizes RTK’s remaining issues with the secrecy bill. On Wednesday 28 August, the Protection of State Information Bill (the Secrecy Bill) enters the final stages of Parliamentary deliberation. A recent Parliamentary programme has the Secrecy Bill scheduled to be voted […]
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23 August 2012
Information Law Arrives in Malta, But Reform Needed
By Kevin Aquilina Aquilina is the Dean of the Faculty of Laws at the University of Malta. This article was first published Aug. 22 in the Times of Malta. By means of Legal Notice 156 of 2012 published in The Malta Government Gazette of May 18, 2012, the remaining provisions of the Freedom of Information […]