How can citizens’ groups and other stakeholders build political will for the approval and enactment of right to information laws? By analysing experience in Honduras, Nicaragua, Chile and Uruguay, this book chapter from Civicus explores how political will was built to pass access to information laws. It also looks at the challenges of implementation, arguing that the adoption of legislation is merely an important first step. It will mean little if government, encouraged by informed citizens, does not implement the laws.
The right to information empowers people by giving them the knowledge they need to demand political, economic and social rights from their governments. Various global and regional human rights agreements recognise the right to receive and impart information. Currently, over 80 countries have systems to provide citizen access to government-held information.
All four case study countries experienced the repression of civic liberties under dictatorships during the twentieth century. Indigenous civil society and citizen groups have been trying to strengthen democracy in these countries for several decades.
Civil society efforts to promote access to information laws required comprehensive strategies, smart alliances and a clear understanding of the obstacles. Some of these obstacles were visible and easy to target, and others were hidden and more difficult to deal with. Particular issues included the following:
- Cultures of transparency are lacking. Colonial forms of governance have led to cultures of opaqueness and mistrust. Adoption of access laws will have little impact without challenging such cultures.
- Corruption is an important issue across Latin America. Government transparency and access to information is an essential anti-corruption tool.
- Determining which institutions access to information laws should cover required debate.
- In building political will, campaigners sought to persuade diverse stakeholders of the benefits of enhanced access to information.
- Broad coalitions of actors were vital in all cases.
Once laws have been passed, renewed political will and the concerted efforts of a range of actors are required to make progress visible and real. Specifically:
- Governments should pay sufficient attention to three different phases: (i) the adoption of legislation; (ii) the implementation and enforcement of legislation; and (iii) active efforts to encourage the public’s use of the law.
- CSOs, working in partnership with the media and educational institutions, have a vital role to play in raising awareness of citizen rights and promoting citizen knowledge and use of access laws.
- The laws require institutions to compile and organise their information in a range of different formats and by different channels.
- Demand is likely to be highest in the early stages, and so sufficient resources have to be made available in a timely fashion.
- Rights to information must be balanced with the need to protect privacy and sensitive data.
- A culture of transparency and accountability can only be achieved by genuinely independent oversight mechanisms. Institutional autonomy and continual citizen monitoring are required. Oversight mechanisms should involve elected or appointed members that represent a diversity of opinions and communities.
