What’s New
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17 May 2013
Kenyan Court Limits Who Can Make Information Requests
The Kenyan High Court has ruled that only citizens have a constitutional right of access to government information, preventing media groups, nongovernmental organizations and others from making requests. This outcome was criticized as a “narrow interpretation” by a Kenya-based staff person of Article 19. In the same May 13 ruling, the court deemed that the […]
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17 May 2013
Russia Leaving OGP; Provides No Explanation
Russia has withdrawn from membership in the Open Government Partnership. An official communication that it would drop out was received May 17, although it had signaled its intention several months ago and did not attend ther ministerial meeting in London last month, according to OGP-connected sources. Russia’s letter of intent to join is dated April […]
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17 May 2013
Brazil’s New Access Law Underperforming: Article 19
One out of three requests for information under the one-year-old Brazilian law were not responded to, according to a new study by Article 19 (English and Portuguese). Satisfactory answers were received 44 percent of the time, the group reported. In addition, it said, the quality of the information supplied was poor, often containing partial information. […]
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17 May 2013
UK Group Campaigns Against Proposed FOI Legislation
The Campaign for Freedom of Information has detailed its objections to proposed changes to the British freedom of information law and launched a drive to get support from members of Parliament. The criticisms are summarized in an eight-page letter signed by Maurice Frankel, CFOI’s Director. The letter says the proposed changes would make it easier […]
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17 May 2013
Colombian Law Approved by Court, With Exceptions
Colombia’s public information law has passed constitutional muster, subject to a few conditions. The Constitutional Court said the new law is now ready for presidential approval, according to articles here, here and here (in Spanish).. Text is available from the court. Type “acceso” in the browser to locate the text of the law and the comments by […]
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17 May 2013
Revenue Watch Issues Index on Resource Transparency
Eighty percent of the nations responsible for most of the world’s oil, gas and minerals production lack adequate transparency and accountability standards, according to a new index from Revenue Watch Institute. Out of all 58 countries covered by the Resource Governance Index, 47 countries failed to meet satisfactory levels, the group said. See the downloads […]
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17 May 2013
Protest Held in Denmark Over Controversial Amendments
Several thousand persons demonstrated in Christiansborg, Denmark, against the proposed freedom of information law amendments, and two international journalism groups voiced their opposition. “The crowd was treated to rousing speeches and several musical performances in yesterday’s warm afternoon sun,” according to a Copenhagen Post article. One speaker was Anders Højsted, a Radikale board member from […]
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17 May 2013
Appeals Rise in Ireland, Irish Commissioner O’Reilly Says
Appeals to the Irish information commissioner are up, some government departments are refusing to provide information to her, and budget pressures are being used to justify delays in responding to requests, according to Information Commissioner Emily O’Reilly. The information appeared in her annual report for 2012 and in an article in The Irish Times by Steven […]
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16 May 2013
Indian Government Seeks Examples of Best Practice
The Indian government has invited “write ups” describing best practices on implementation of Right to Information Act, with prize money. The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said it will publish a compendium of best practices on the RTI being adopted by a government department or public authority. “The best 20 write-ups would be selected […]
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16 May 2013
OGP Seeks Researchers on 39 Country Action Plans
The Open Government Partnership’s “Independent Reporting Mechanism” (IRM) is looking for researchers in 39 countries to carry out evaluations of national action plans. The IRM is now accepting applications for researchers in the following countries: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, […]
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16 May 2013
UK Commissioner Addresses Handling Vexatious Requests
The British information commissioner’s office May 15 issued extensive guidance on dealing with “vexatious” requests under the Freedom of Information Act. The guidance “is clearly going to lead to many more requests being refused as vexatious,” according to an eight-page letter sent by the Campaign for Freedom of Information to the government to detail its objections […]
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13 May 2013
OGP Decides to Extend Cycle for Action Plans, Reviews
The Open Government Partnership has agreed to provide more time for member countries to write new action plans and assess their progress, and to have their performances reviewed by independent parties. OGP leaders meeting in London April 22-24 decided it would be better to institute a two-year cycle for these fundemental activities rather than the […]
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13 May 2013
OGP Sets 2014 Elections for New Government Leaders
The Open Government Partnership has come up with another plan for picking new government representatives to its Steering Committee, now looking to hold elections for seven positions in October of 2014. The OGP also has decided to increase the size of the Steering Committee from 18 to 20 in 2014, according to the minutes of […]
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13 May 2013
OGP to Examine Ways to Encourage Stretch Goals
The desire to see countries “stretch” to more ambitious heights has emerged as a potential goal within the Open Government Partnership, according to the minutes of the April 22-24 meeting in London. The topic came up as OGP leaders discussed a draft strategy update. Deliberations are expected to continue at the next Steering Committee meeting in Julyafter a […]
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13 May 2013
OGP Asks Governments to Contribute $25,000 Each
Seeking to address financial concerns, the leaders of the Open Government Partnership have decided to ask all 58 members to chip in at least $25,000. The slow flow of funding from governments was discussed at the OGP meetings in London April 22-24, according to the recently released minutes. The OGP receives substantial foundation support, but […]
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10 May 2013
Hungarian President Sends FOI Bill Back to Parliament
Hungarian President Janos Áder has told Parliament to reconsider a controversial law diminishing the access to information law, though some critics would have preferred that he had referred it to the constitutional court for review. Parliament hastily approved a bill April 30 sponsored by the ruling Fidesz party, generated considerable objection from pro-transparency groups. (See […]
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10 May 2013
Critics Fault Guidelines for Proactive Disclosure in India
The Indian government’s recent guidelines on proactive disclosure are diluted, right to information activists said May 7. Members of the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI) including Anjali Bhardwaj, Nikhil Dey and Venkatesh Nayak said that the government had overlooked other recommendations from the government-sponsored task force that studied the issue. Not included were […]
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10 May 2013
U.S. Orders More Usability for Government Data; Inventory
President Barrack Obama May 9 issued an Executive Order and a Policy Directive requiring that data generated going forward by the government be made available in open, machine-readable formats. Agencies also must create and maintain an “enterprise data inventory” that accounts for datasets used in the agency’s information systems” and indicates which are available to the […]
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10 May 2013
FOI Notes: EU, New Index, FOI Timelines, FOI History, More
European Union: Access Info issues a citizen-friendly Guide on Access to EU Documents and calls on members of the public and civil society organizations to exercise their rights and file access to documents requests. Resource Governance Index: The Revenue Watch Institute will unveil a new “ Resource Governance Index,” a collection of research, rankings and analysis that […]
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10 May 2013
First Commissioner Named by President in Yemen
Yemen President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadion May 6 appointed Samir Amin Noman as the country’s first information commissioner The appointment came about a year after passage of the new FOI law. Noman is an information systems specialist and previously worked for the Social Fund for Development, according to an article in the Yemen Times. “We […]