Information Disclosure Policy: A Toolkit for Pacific Governments (July 2006)
### CURRENT STATE OF DISCLOSURE IN THE PACIFIC The right of people to access information from government has long been recognised as one of the fundamental principles of democratic governance and participatory development. In order to participate effectively, people need information - so that they can develop informed opinions, argue on the basis of evidence and justify their views without relying on suppositions and rumours. Internationally, more and more governments have accepted the central role that information disclosure plays in promoting more participatory and accountable governance. Ad hoc information channels In 2005, the Pacific Media and Communication Facility (PMCF) reported that, with a few exceptions, access to government information in the Pacific ranged from ad hoc to difficult, and that the quality and timeliness of the information supplied varied significantly.5 There is a limited amount of useful, up-to-date information available about Pacific governments. Only a very small number of Pacific governments have websites which capture information about all government departments, for example, Fiji. More commonly, one or two departments may set up a website on their own, but these usually highlight only their own work and the websites are often not updated. This makes it difficult even for citizens in the capital city to engage effectively with their government, while the large numbers of Pacific islanders living and working in other countries and those in rural areas find it even more difficult. It can be hard for people to find out about services and benefits to which they are entitled. Identifying who is responsible for what service or policy is not easy, and it can be hard to track down officials' current contact details. Parliamentary and ministerial information can be difficult to obtain, even for some parliamentarians. Parliament is broadcast live in most Pacific countries, and Hansard is also available in most places. However, in some countries, Hansard, copies of legislation and court judgments need to be purchased. In Papua New Guinea, it was reported that parliament had kept no published Hansard since 1997.6 Even where final laws and rules are published, lack of publishing facilities mean that MPs and the public have reported difficulty in accessing draft legislation and rules so they can provide comments and meaningful input into the law-making process. Where parliamentary committees are functional, it is still often difficult to access their terms of reference, find out when they sit, obtain copies of submissions from the public and access draft and final committee reports. Very few countries have government speeches, policies and legislation available via a government website. Government access to email in some countries is very limited due to cost and availability. Even in countries that have better access to the internet and email, internet connectivity is not necessarily available to all government officers working with the media or the public - access may be restricted to the departmental chief executive officer, for example. This can make it hard for officials to communicate with each other, share information and disseminate it quickly and cheaply to the public and the media. The technical limitations on government-public/media communications are exacerbated by the lack of whole-of-government communication and information policies that establish dissemination protocols. Often, officials are genuinely unsure about whether they can release information into the public domain because they have no clear guidelines on what can legitimately be disclosed. In the context of the media specifically, at times there is also a view in some countries and in individual departments that media coverage of government information is not a priority and/or is an intrusion. Government information in these instances is not made available to the media and/or the flow of information is carefully controlled by government.7 The 2005 PMCF survey of 14 Pacific governments specifically examined existing government information disclosure mechanisms, with a particular focus on information channels for the media. The PMCF survey found a mix of some or all of the following in the Pacific island countries that were reviewed:8 A central government media or information unit, usually located within the prime minister's or president's office, that may or may not liaise with other government departments (FSM, Kiribati, Samoa, the Solomon Islands and Tonga). Fiji and PNG have Information Divisions set up within other Ministries; A press secretary for the prime minister or president and/or a senior departmental officer who acts in this role. In some countries this officer will have journalism experience (Kiribati, Fiji, FSM, PNG, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu). A quasi-information unit through a government radio station (FSM, Nauru, Palau and RMI). Information or media officers within individual departments (mostly these were found in PNG departments). Government departments in other countries may have an officer who is authorised to work with the media, and/or a CEO who deals with any media enquiries. Media units with at least two full-time media officers in individual government departments. These units tend to be in a few particularly media-active departments, such as health, agriculture and education, and focus on community education rather than policy issues. These are usually handled by the minister and/or departmental head.
Innovative government-community information partnerships Although many governments have not yet taken up information disclosure as a key priority, there are some early signs that governments are beginning to take action to develop innovative strategies for promoting information dissemination to the public. For example, in early 2006, the Solomon Islands Government signed a memorandum of understanding with the People First Network (PFNet), which operates 20 rural email stations across the country, to use their network to disseminate government information. The Government Communication Unit, with assistance under the RAMSI Machinery of Government Programme, has started emailing a weekly government e-bulletin to the rural villages serviced by PFNet. The project also feeds back comments from villagers back to the government in the capital, Honiara, using the same arrangement The Director of the Government Communications Unit specifically noted the dissemination strategy was intended to empower the rural population by keeping them informed and giving them a means to communicate with the Government. Papua New Guinea is also experimenting with "telephone cafes" (akin to internet cafes, but using telephones), which provide a similar opportunity to harness community communications resources to disseminate government information.
Access to information laws and policies Up until the early 1980s, only a handful of governments had implemented access to information policies or laws. Australia and New Zealand9 were part of this pioneering group, both passing their access laws in 1982. Today however, almost 70 countries around the world have passed freedom of information legislation and/or enshrined the right to information in their constitutions. However, none of the Pacific island countries have yet passed a freedom of information law. At the regional level, the 2005 Pacific Plan for Strengthening Regional Cooperation and Integration, endorsed by Pacific Leaders at the Forum Leaders Meeting, specifically references freedom of information. Under the general objective of "Good Governance: Strategic Objective 12" (improved transparency, accountability, equity and efficiency in the management and use of resources in the Pacific), there is a mention of work on "freedom of information". The Forum Secretariat has also been working on information disclosure issues internally, and it is understood to be developing an internal Information Disclosure Policy to guide ForSec officials and the public. At the national level, there is already some constitutional protection for freedom of information in place.10 Section 51 of the Papua New Guinea Constitution explicitly recognises "the right of reasonable access to official documents, subject only to the need for such secrecy as is reasonably justifiable in a democratic society". The draft Federal Solomon Islands Constitution also includes a specific right to access information. The Constitutions of the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu recognise the freedom to seek and receive information as part of the broader right to freedom of expression. Six countries - FSM, Fiji, Palau, PNG, RMI and Tonga - specifically guarantee freedom of the press. The Constitutions of four countries - the Cook Islands, Nauru, Samoa and Vanuatu - do not guarantee freedom of the media or freedom to communicate ideas and information. The Constitution of Fiji is particularly interesting in its approach, with Article 174 specifically requiring that Parliament pass freedom of information legislation. The Constitution came into force in 1997. In 1998, a bi-partisan Constitutional Consequential Legislation Parliamentary Committee started developing freedom of information legislation. A draft was produced in the form of a "White Paper" published in the in the Government Gazette in December 1998. A Bill was approved by the Fiji Labour Party in early 2000 and was published for consideration by Parliament, but lapsed after the May 2000 coup. Civil society also launched a Model Freedom of Information Bill in 2004. More recently, the new Fiji Government elected in May 2006 has stated that it will table a Freedom of Information Bill in Parliament shortly. The new Solomon Islands Government which came into power in early 2006 specifically refers to freedom of information legislation in its legislative program. The only other report of government freedom of information legislation being developed is in the Cook Islands where it is understood that a draft Bill was submitted to Cabinet for consideration in 2005. It is not clear what action has been taken since then. In Papua New Guinea, media groups developed draft freedom of information legislation in 1999, but no action has yet been taken on that draft. In Vanuatu, the local chapter of Transparency International is currently finalising a model Freedom of Information Bill. 7Ibid. 8Ibid. 9New Zealand is set to commemorate 25 years of FOI in 2007, when it hosts the Fifth International Information Commissioners Conference. 10PMCF (2005) Informing Citizens.
Commissioned by the Pacific Media and Communications Facility, an Australian Government, AusAID initiative managed by MDI International in association with MC Media & Associates