What’s New
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13 May 2015
OGP Director Linda Frey Resigns After Two Years
Linda Frey, Executive Director of the Open Government Partnership Support Unit since January 2013, announced her resignation May 13. The Steering Committee, which met in Mexico in mid-April, urged her to stay, according to an OGP official. She will remain the position for the next three to four months. “After that, I look forward to […]
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13 May 2015
Philippines Coalition Urges House to Work on FOI Bill
The Right to Know, Right Know! Coalition in the Philippines is urging the House of Representatives to “work with a little more speed and focus” on long-pending freedom of information bill. The FOI bill “is on the cusp of passage,” observed the Coalition in a May 12 statement tempered with caution. “But while the FOI […]
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13 May 2015
US Plans New System for Classifying Information
By Steven Aftergood The author directs the Federation of American Scientists’ Project on Government Secrecy and writes Sececy News, where this article first appeared May 10. After years of preparation, the executive branch is poised to adopt a government-wide system for designating and safeguarding unclassified information that is to be withheld from public disclosure. The […]
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13 May 2015
WJP Authors Answer Questions About New Index
The authors of a new index of government openness have responded to questions about their methodology and indicated eagerness to hone their measurement of access to information. Juan Carlos Botero and Alejandro Ponce of the World Justice Project have written an article to amplify and explain the WJP Open Government Index. After the announcement of […]
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13 May 2015
Leak Causes Zambian Leader To Resist Access Legislation
Zambia’s President Edgar Lungu has voiced reluctance to support access to information legislation in the wake of a disclosure that his administration kept a loan from China secret. Lungu on May 10 objected to an article in The Post that the government is hiding a $192 million loan from a Chinese weapons manufacturer for security […]
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13 May 2015
South Africa Sets Stage to Implement Secrecy Law
The South African government appears to be making plans to implement the so-called Secrecy Bill. President Jacob Zuma has delayed signing the controversial legislation for 18 months, but a recent news report said State Security Minister David Mahlobo has been drafting regulations to implement the Protection of State Information Bill. The report by Andisiwe Makinana […]
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7 May 2015
Ghana RTI Advocates Plan New Push for Stalled Bill
The Coalition for the Right to Information and the Ghana Journalists Association have announced plans for a “pass the bill now” campaign. The groups hope to encourage the government to pass the long-stalled RTI bill into law. “The implications for not passing a law for citizens’ right to information are a sign that the political […]
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7 May 2015
OGP Upgrades Standard for Star-Rated Commitments
The Open Government Partnership is making is slightly harder for member countries to earn a “star” rating for its commitments. “In order to further incentivize a race-to-the-top in OGP and to ensure that starred commitments are in fact model commitments, starting in 2015 the IRM will raise the standards for what can qualify for a […]
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7 May 2015
PPP Calls for Adoption of Right to Information Bill
The Pakistan People’s Party has called for adoption of the Right to Information (RTI) Bill, an appeal welcomed by a key advocacy group, though it noted that the PPP didn’t push through an RTI bill when it was in power. In recent times, an RTI bill was adopted by a Senate standing committee but it […]
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7 May 2015
Jamaica Minister Pledges Introduction of ATI Bill
Jamaica’s minister with responsibility for information, Sandrea Falconer, has said that a new Access to Information Act will be tabled and passed in the current financial year. Falconer made her comments to The Gleaner, at the same time dismissing opposition assertions that the government was reluctant to propose ATI amendments. Opposition spokeswoman on Information Olivia […]
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7 May 2015
Namibean Group Urges Consultation on FOI Bill
The Namibia Media Trust has called for consultation with the government on freedom of information legislation. Gwen Lister, chairperson of the Namibia Media Trust (NMT) issued a statement on World Press Freedom Day saying that the media still struggles to access information from official sources, which in turn inhibits good investigative journalism and ethical practices. “While […]
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7 May 2015
New Mexican Law Enters Into Force; IFAI Gets New Name
The new Mexican General Law of Transparency and Access to Public Information (LGTAIP) entered into force May 5, according to an announcement by the Federal Institute for Access to Information and Data Protection (IFAI) which is changing its name to National Institute of Transparency, Access to Information and Protection of Personal Data (INAI). The announcement […]
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7 May 2015
Opposition Party Slams Modi Government on CIC Vacancy
Congress Party President Sonia Gandhi has attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his “blatant U-turn” on the issue of transparency, according to news reports such as one in the Economic Times and another in the Hindustan Times. She said May 6 in Parliament that Modi’s government is “deliberately” not filling the post of Chief Information […]
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7 May 2015
Cayman Islands FOI Law Rated 13th in the World
The Cayman Islands freedom of information law ranks 13th in the world, according to an evaluation conducted by the Centre for Law and Democracy and AccessInfo Europe. The Cayman Islands law scored 88 points on a 150 point system used to rank 102 countries’ laws. It was the first time the Cayman Islands law was […]
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7 May 2015
Bahamas FOI Bill Rated Average in New Scoring
The Bahamian Freedom of Information bill scores 88 points, which would put it in a tie for 48th place in the world, if it ever becomes law, according to an evaluation by the Global Right to Information Rating. Antigua has the top-rated law in the Caribbean region, 11th in the world, and the newly ranked Cayman […]
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7 May 2015
FOI Notes: Open Data, United States, Russia, India, Scotland
Open Data: The OGP blog has a report from the Open Data Working Group on new research studies: Open North Inc. (Canada): “Recommended standards and best practices for open data” (and “Gaps and opportunities for standardization in OGP members’ open data catalogs“) Mitrovic Development & Research Institute (South Africa): “Building open data capacity through e-skills acquisition“ […]
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7 May 2015
Uruguayan Court Denies Access on Surveillance
A Uruguayan court has denied access to basic information about “The Guardian,” a surveillance program instituted by the Uruguayan government. The case was brought by the Center for Archives and Access to Public Information (Centro de Archivos y Acceso a la Información Pública) and rejected in an April 23 court ruling (in Spanish). CAinfo requested a […]
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6 May 2015
OGP Group Announces Grants for ATI Research
Working with a shoestring budget, the leaders of the Access Working Group of the Open Government Partnership May 6 announced a “micro-grants” program for research into the relationship of access to information with other open government efforts. Information on the terms of reference for the grants and the applications process will be announced soon on […]
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30 April 2015
Ukraine Passes Open Data Bill; Soviet Files Available
The Ukrainian parliament has passed new laws encouraging the release of government open data and providing more information from the country’s archive of Soviet-era KGB files. Parliament April 9 approved a law to encourage government agencies to publish free operational data, statistics and reports on government websites and the national open data web platform at […]
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30 April 2015
FOI Notes: SE Asia, Media Freedom, US, Research, Art, Budget Transparency, More
Southeast Asia: Transparency International reports that “rampant corruption across Southeast Asia threatens to derail plans for greater economic integration,” and makes more transparency one of the necessary reforms. “Three key areas have presented themselves in ongoing consultations as both vital and underdeveloped in terms of transparency and citizen engagement in Southeast Asia: 1) whistleblower protection […]