Acesso à Informaçâo do Estado: Os Arquivos, a Transparêncìa Administrativa e o Direito à Informaçâo (Access to Information of the State: The Archives, Administrative Transparency and the Right to Information)

2005 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eugenio A Monteiro
Keyword(s):  
The State ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Right To Information ◽  
The Right

Capturing Institutional Change

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Himanshu Jha
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Change ◽  
Social Processes ◽  
The State ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Historical Evidence ◽  
Theoretical Contribution ◽  
Path Dependent ◽  
Right To Information ◽  
The Right ◽  
Information Regime

Institutions are norms that undergird organizations and are reflected in laws and practices. Scholars point towards the ‘stickiness’ of institutions as stubbornly persisting on the historical landscape. As institutions tend to persist, the related political, administrative, and social processes persist as well. Therefore, it is puzzling when perpetuating institutions change paths. This book unravels one such puzzle by examining the process of institutional change through the lenses of transformation in the ‘information regime’ in India by tracing the passage of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005. Historically, in India, the norm of secrecy was entrenched within the state, perpetuating since colonial times. Yet, in 2005, the RTI Act was enacted heralding an institutional shift from the norm of ‘secrecy’ to the new norm of ‘openness’. What explains this institutional change? Based on new historical evidence overlooked in the mainstream literature, this book shows that the RTI Act was path-dependent on ideas of openness that emerged within the state since Independence. It argues that an endogenous policy discourse on enacting legislation on access to information had begun since Independence; it incrementally evolved and reached a ‘tipping point’ and, after surviving many political challenges, resulted in institutional change. Initially these ideas emerged gradually and incrementally as part of opposition politics, but eventually became part of mainstream politics. The book presents an alternate perspective to the mainstream narrative explaining the evolution of the RTI Act and makes theoretical contribution to the literature on institutional change.

scholarly journals Spain Case Study: Covid-19 and Censorship during the State of Alarm

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
LAURA CABALLERO TRENADO
Keyword(s):  
The State ◽  
Right To Information ◽  
The Right

This Paper analyzes the constitutional coverage of the Right to Information during the state of alarm in Spain

scholarly journals The right to information about the activities of public authorities: certain theoretical and legal aspects

2021 ◽  
pp. 9-14
Author(s):  
Alla IVANOVSKA ◽  
Olena HALUS ◽  
Iryna RYZHUK
Keyword(s):  
Active Form ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Legal Aspects ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Public Authorities ◽  
The Public ◽  
Democratic State ◽  
Right To Information ◽  
The Right

It is found that the right to information about the activities of public authorities is linked to the more general constitutional right of everyone to freely collect, store and disseminate information in any lawful manner. The analyzed law is subject to international and domestic rules governing the right of access to information in general. At the same time, this right is regulated in great detail by special regulations that establish additional guarantees. An important guarantee that ensures the realization of the right of citizens to information about the activities of public authorities is the principle of transparency, which applies in many democracies around the world. The principle of transparency is manifested, firstly, in the fact that public authorities are obliged to inform the public about their activities, and secondly, every member of society has the appropriate right to receive such information, and the level of access to information about activities of public authorities is very important. Forms of exercising the right to information about the activities of public authorities, taking into account the peculiarities of legal regulation, are divided into passive and active. The passive form presupposes that the citizen himself gets acquainted with the information about the activity of the public authority, which duty is to make it public. An active form of exercising this right involves direct appeals of citizens or their groups to public authorities with requests to provide relevant information. It is concluded that ensuring the exercise of the right to information about the activities of public authorities is the key to building a democratic state governed by the rule of law and relies on public authorities, which are obliged to create all conditions for public participation in the adoption of legal acts by these bodies and to provide adequate access to complete and objective information about their activities.

scholarly journals Public and Social Interest in Journalistic Activity

2020 ◽  
pp. 118-126
Author(s):  
Dobrochna Ossowska-Salamonowicz
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
The State ◽  
Freedom Of The Press ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Political Leaders ◽  
The Right To Privacy ◽  
Public Figures ◽  
The Press ◽  
The Right ◽  
Right Of Access

Freedom of the press is one of the best ways of reflecting and shaping public opinion about the ideas and attitudes of political leaders, public figures or those entrusted with public functions. Freedom of the press is also an opportunity to depict reprehensible phenomena such as corruption, fraud, crime or nepotism. The press may be faced with types of subjects that may cause dilemmas for the journalist. Whose interest should above all be represented: the interest of the society or the state? What is more important: the right to privacy or the right of access to information?

Problems Relating to the Right to Information in Turkey

2019 ◽  
pp. 134-168
Author(s):  
Omur Aydin
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Participatory Democracy ◽  
The State ◽  
State Of Emergency ◽  
Attitudes And Behaviors ◽  
And Behaviors ◽  
Right To Information ◽  
The Right ◽  
Share Information

Traditionally, public administration has always preferred to work behind closed doors. However, the concept of participatory democracy, which developed especially after the 1950s, encouraged citizens to participate more in the decision-making mechanisms of the state. Turkey experiences many problems in exercising the right to information, which was enacted in 2003, arising from the administration's attitudes and behaviors and also from the legislation. Foremost among these are the fact that citizens have not been made sufficiently aware of this right and that the administration is reluctant to share information. An analysis of the data and statistics in Turkey shows a rising trend in the exercise of this right by citizens between 2004-2015. However, considering the size of Turkey's population, the rate can still be deemed low. Post-2015 figures show a radical decline in citizens' exercising of the right to information. This situation may be explained by the painful process that Turkey experienced from 2015 onwards and the state of emergency implementations that followed.

Access to Information

2014 ◽  
pp. 126-144
Author(s):  
Monica Teresa Sousa ◽  
Leonardo Valles Bento
Keyword(s):  
Good Governance ◽  
Public Information ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Federal Law ◽  
Public Authorities ◽  
Governmental Agencies ◽  
Private Interests ◽  
Information Law ◽  
Right To Information ◽  
The Right

Right to information means the right of citizens to have access to information produced by, or held by, public/governmental agencies. This chapter intends to analyze the legal grounds of the right to access to information in Brazil as compared to the best international practice. One of the main risks to good governance and democracy is the use of public resources for private purposes, and the development of new communication technologies, especially the Internet, has revolutionized the manner in which the public interacts with the information available, impacting democratic practices. In November 2011, the adoption of Federal Law 12,527 made Brazil the 89th country in the world, and the 19th in Latin America, to adopt specific legislation implementing the right to access to public information. In Brazil, public authorities, especially the courts, tend to accept easily the allegations of violation of privacy and defamation of those whose interests are harmed or threatened by the broadcasting of information. In the conflict between access to information and private interests, the latter has prevailed. In this context, the Access to Information Law has become a relevant policy to the Brazilian civil society to strengthen and consolidate a democratic political culture and promote institutional maturity.

Legal grounds for restricting access to information: a philosophical aspect

2021 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 64-73
Author(s):  
Oleh M. Omelchuk ◽  
Mariia P. Muzyka ◽  
Mykola O. Stefanchuk ◽  
Iryna P. Storozhuk ◽  
Inna A. Valevska
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Security And Privacy ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Free Access ◽  
Constitutional Rights ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Right To Information ◽  
The Right

The rapid spread of the Internet and communication technologies raises the issue of access to information, especially access to information via the Internet. The amount of information on the network is constantly increasing, and at the same time more and more efforts are being made to limit users' access to it to some extent. The more restrictions state bodies create in this area, the more efforts are made to circumvent or violate these prohibitions. Free access to information in a democratic society should be the rule, and restriction of this right – the exception. These restrictions should be clearly defined by law and applied only in cases where legitimate and vital interests, such as national security and privacy, need to be respected. The main purpose of this study is to consider the legal and socio-philosophical aspects of access to information. Restricting access to documents as media has been practiced since ancient times. The study highlights the existing inconsistencies and lags in the implementation of the principles of exercise of the right to information in Ukraine at the level of laws and subordinate legislation. The study classifies information according to the nature of restrictions (exercise) of constitutional rights and freedoms in the information sphere. It was discovered that the legislation of Ukraine does not systematise the list of confidential information in a single regulation in contrast to the Russian Federation and provides the main types of confidential personal information. It was found that restrictions on any freedoms and human rights, including in the information space, can be established with the help of various regulators, the dominant among which are the following levels of implementation: legal (legislative); moral self-consciousness of society; autonomy of the person. Features and spheres of action of regulators of restriction of freedoms and human rights are described. To restrict access to information, various methods are used to protect it from unauthorised receipt, which can be divided into two groups: formal and informal

scholarly journals The Conflicting Implications of the Right to Information as Recognised by Public International Law

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 212-220
Author(s):  
Bilyana Borisova Manova
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Public Affairs ◽  
Private Life ◽  
Public Access ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Public Authorities ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Right To Information ◽  
The Right

Abstract The present article outlines the most significant stages in the gradual development of international law towards a recognition of a right to information. It explores the instruments and judicial decisions in which this right has been acknowledged as well as the conditions under which it may be exercised including the categories of requesters entitled to it, the kinds of information that may be accessed and the purposes of such access. The article further examines the manifold and often conflicting aspects of the right to information and its relation to concepts such as democracy, security, freedom of expression, right to private life, corporate secrets, investigating journalism and whistleblowers. In particular, it analyses the importance of the access to information about the exercise of political power by public authorities and the crucial role it should play in enabling wellfunctioning democratic societies where responsible government, public scrutiny over the political processes and a right to an informed participation in public affairs is effectively guaranteed to all citizens. However, the risks that the public access to information poses to national security and to the well-recognized right to private life are also taken into account

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