Right to Know: Freedom of Information

Right to Know: Freedom of Information, 2002-2003

Issued by project team of the GI for
Right to Know: Freedom of Information project

Transparency of state organizations and citizen's right to access to information Situational analysis Report Summary

Goal:

Define an overall picture on the current situation of citizens' right access to information held by government bodies, dissemination of information on activities and achievements of the state organizations to the public, systems and regulation of holding information, organizations' secrecy and its list and transparency and openness of state institutions in connection with drafting FOI legislation.

Framework

In accordance with Parliament Resolution No 58, which adopted structure of state bodies, there are in total 42 state agencies: 8 regulating agencies and 34 implementing agencies. Questionnaires of the present analysis distributed to 55 public organizations and 47 received. It involved 62.2% of the state organizations that:

- Established by the Parliament 3
- State administrative(Ministries) 9
- Judicial and other 11
- Regulating bodies 7
- Implementing bodies 17

The analysis were also conducted among citizens in order to analyze the current situation of the citizen's right to know and involved 100 people representing different social groups over 18 years old with different education and profession

Results and findings

Transparency and openness of the state bodies

36 out of 47 state organizations established it bodies: media or public relation departments, divisions and sections with an aim to disseminate information on their activities to the public. 29 bodies see their duties to distribute information on their activities to the public and 23- to provide the public with information.

26 organizations said that they distribute information public interest on policy, content of decisions and its reasons of the organizations and 22 organizations responded that they regularly inform the public in their activities and its results. One of ways of information dissemination- according to state organizations is media. According to the State Auditing Commission, only in 2001 more than 80 state organizations published their advertising in 2 daily newspapers ( there are 6 dailies) and spent more than 20 mln. MNT. App. 3.9 mln. MNT per a month earns "Unen" - ruling party's daily newspaper from adds of state organizations.

75% of respondents replied to question: Did you receive information you requested from state organizations and they responded:

- Yes 12%
- Sometimes 6.7%
- No 81.3%

Reasons why they did not:

Management did not permitted 15.1%
State secret 7.6%
Organization's secret 7.6%
Information is not available 18.2%
Official papers are not for ordinary citizens 16.6%
It was refused without explanation 19.7%
Refused when they heard about the purpose 10.6%
Official was busy 1.5%
Answer was not satisfactory 1.5%
Requested payment 1.5%

State organizations also request information from another state body by
- official letter 42
- information exchange 27
- Explaining purpose of obtaining information 19

Citizen's right to obtain information
Information restriction

Organizations adopted list of secret materials 32
Organizations without adopted list of secrecy 12

Organizations approved procedure or rule on information protection 33
Organizations without any procedures or rules 12

Is your list a part of your organization's secret
Yes 23
No 14

Is your procedure a part of your organizations' secret?
Yes 26
No 12

Reasons why the state bodies refuse in information:
25% state organizations and officials do not like
21.4% no legal guarantee
17.3% the public does not know about their rights
0.60% the right is not necessary, so it is not justified
5.95% the citizen can not be informed even the right is guaranteed
29.2% no training, information and civic education on the public's right to know
0.59% officials simply do not want to provide information

What could be done in the future?

Organizations out of 47:
- Create legal environment 17
- Information of state organizations is open, so the citizen must be trained and informed 21
- Make the state institutions more transparent than now 17
- No need for legislation, but organizational measures are necessary 10

Citizen out of 100
- Conduct training for state officials 51
- Employ workers, who are committed to provide information 29
- Create legal environment 50
- Organize workshops for the public 56
- Prime Minister should issue a Resolution 12
- Make information more free starting from Ministries 31
- Information dissemination must be without censorship 1
- Release MNR&TV from the Government 1
- Distribute information on the public's right through radio and TV 1
- Make information free from local governments 1

Conclusion
1. The most of state organizations concentrate on public relations in order to inform the people in their activities
2. Information hold by state organizations is restricted for obtaining by the existing laws, especially Law on Organization's secrecy prohibits free information flow
3. The most of state organizations run its separate information bodies so it would to contribute to further positive developments of access to information
4. In general, the citizen know about their right to access information, but mentality and habit have not been changed and they are not informed
5. There are many one-sided information sources, so public information is not objective

Recommendations:

1. Law on Organizations' Secrecy must be abolished

2. Information bodies at the state organizations must be re-structured and re-organized in convenience of transparency and openness

3. Organize intensive workshops for state officials and information officers on the importance, concept and principles of FOI and its role in strengthening democracy and take measure to change their mentality and attitudes

4. Organize works at information bodies of the state organizations in creation of possibilities of dissemination of public requested information

5. Lobby the Parliament and the Government in passage of legislation on FOI

6. Conduct public campaigns on their right to know

7. Change the attitude of state organizations in cooperating and supporting ruling party's press