Posts Tagged ‘implementation’
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21 November 2012
FOI Notes: Latin America, Austerity and RTI, WikiLeaks
Research: A new study ranks the openness of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. To build the ranking 4 main factors were considered: 1) regulations (normatividad); 2) parliamentary labour (labor parlamentaria); 3) budget and administrative management (presupuesto y gestión administrativa) and 4) citizen participation and attention (participación y atención ciudadana). Factors have different weights (see […]
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7 November 2012
World Bank Proposes Loan for Tunisia With Access Clause
Improved access to information is a goal and condition of a proposed $500 million loan for Tunisia soon to be considered by the World Bank Executive Board. The goal established is for Tunisia to have granted “at least 25 requests for information by citizens” by the end of 2014.” This goal would be established if […]
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6 November 2012
Argentinian President Issues Declassification Decree
Argentina’s President Cristina Kirchner has issued a decree declassifying decrees and resolutions that had been kept secret in the past, but with exceptions. The Oct. 31 decree says disclosure will not occur if the decrees or resolutions relate to national security, homeland security, foreign relations, conflicts with other states and military conflicts in the South […]
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2 November 2012
Hawke to Eye Australian FOI Act, Attorney General Says
The Australian government Oct. 31 announced a review of the 1982 Freedom of Information Act. The Attorney General named an experienced government official to conduct the inquiry, Allan Hawke. Hawke’s background and the announcement are discussed in a posting by FOI blogger Peter Timmins. The review is to explore whether the law continues to “provide […]
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1 November 2012
Liberian FOI Law Backed; Sirleaf Order Criticized
As an U.S. backed effort continued to support Liberia in implementing its new freedom of information law, a Liberian group has said the Liberian president is undercutting the law. The Carter Center, with support from the United States Agency for International Development, held a conference as part of a project to raise the awareness of […]
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24 October 2012
Level of FOI Requests Varies With Awareness of Laws
Variation in the per capita usage of freedom of information laws may depend on public awareness of the laws, according to two Swiss researchers. The research was done primarily on the situations in Switzerland and Germany, where usage is lower than in other countries. Or at least it was at the time of the study, […]
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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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15 October 2012
Ex-Liberian Official Assesses Performance on FOI Law
Some editors in Liberia report that the two-year-old freedom of information law is working well, but other editors have experienced difficulty, according to a former top Liberian official, Tiawon Gongloe. He spoke at a recent meeting in Dakar, Senegal , about FOI and national security. The session was one in an ongoing series by Open […]
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12 October 2012
Indian Government Appeals Controversial Court Ruling
The Indian government has appealed a controversial Supreme Court ruling that that has roiled Indian information commissions by mandating more involvement of trained judges in the process. The announcement came Oct. 11, preceding an Oct. 12 speech by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the seventh anniversary of the RTI act at seventh Convention of Central […]
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8 October 2012
Canada to Establish Pilot Portal for Making Requests
The Canadian government has announced plans to create an online portal for citizens to file freedom of information requests to three agencies. The portal will route requests to the proper department, allow fees to be paid electronically, and track action on the request, according to Canadian Press report. The first departments to participate will be […]
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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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5 October 2012
UK to Allow Access to Government Emails
The United Kingdom will require the disclosure of emails and text messages written by government officials. The move was signaled recently and will be described in new government guidance, according to reports in The Independent and on the BBC. A letter from the Department for Education indicates that it will withdraw objections made over the […]
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1 October 2012
Nigerian Group Urges More Commitment to FOI Law
The Right to Know coalition in Nigeria has called “for greater commitment” by the government to the provisions of the new freedom of information law. “R2K notes with great concern that 18 months after the enactment of the FOI Act there is no official gazetted copy of the Law. Worse still, public institutions are yet […]
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1 October 2012
Federal Government Ranks Badly in Canadian Audit
The Canadian national government is “stuck in a rut of delays” when it comes to responding to freedom of information requests, according to the author of the annual audit by Newspapers Canada, issued Sept. 24 at the Sunshine Summit in Calgary. “Municipalities continue to perform fastest in the audit, easily outpacing the senior levels of […]
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1 October 2012
Uruguay Group Launches Website for Requesters
The Center for Archives and Access to Public Information (CAINFO) in Uruguay has created a website for the filing of information requests. The portal “allows access to order public information quickly and easily, facilitating the use of this right to all citizens,” according to the nonprofit organization, founded in 2009. The effort is the result […]
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1 October 2012
U.S. Agencies Create Joint Website for Requesters
Six U.S. government agencies have created FOIAonline, a website “that allows both the public and agency staff to make, monitor, and manage FOIA requests from a single website.” “Requesters may choose to submit requests and file appeals by registering for an account,” according to the explanation on the cost-effectiveness features for the new site. “This […]
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1 October 2012
Bloomberg Tests Finds U.S. Agencies Unresponsive
Only eight of 57 agencies in the United States responded within the 20-day disclosure window to requests for information filed by Bloomberg News to test the freedom of information system. The requests filed in June were for information about official travel by their top official. About half of the 57 agencies eventually disclosed information by […]
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20 September 2012
Scottish Commissioner Sees Growing Number of Appeals
New Scottish Information Commissioner Rosemary Agnew has reported a hike in the number of appeals to her office over freedom of information request denials and criticized the Scottish government presiding over an “unacceptable” erosion access to information. “It is simply not acceptable that citizens’ rights continue to be eroded through complex changes in the delivery […]
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20 September 2012
Cayman Commissioner Reports Agency Resistance
Cayman Islands Information Commissioner Jennifer Dilbert has criticized an unnamed government agency for failing to identify records responsive to a request, according to a recent quarterly report. The report said the commissioner will not hesitate to enforce penalties in the law. Also noted in the report is that a Legislative Assembly subcommittee’s review […]