Pacific FOI Workshop Closes With Agreement

Wednesday 2nd July saw the closing of a three day ‘Freedom of Information Workshop for Pacific Policy Makers’ in Honiara.

 

Sponsored by the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat and the United Nations Development Program Pacific Centre, the workshop aimed to promote awareness of freedom of information law (FOI) within the region. Senior government officials from the Cook Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Tuvaluand Vanuatu attended.

 

Acting Secretary General of the Forum Secretariat Feleti Teo said the workshop would “expose policy makers in the region to the key arguments in favour of FOI, good practice standard of FOI law-making and practical issues for consideration when implementing FOI.”

 

The Forum Secretariat’s regional governance adviser, Dr Henry Ivarature added,

 

 “We don’t expect people to introduce legislation overnight. What we expect to do is to try and introduce this governance value, or this freedom of information, which we see as a mechanism for enhancing good governance, to take it across to the policy makers.”

 

 In learning about the values and importance of freedom of information, regional policy head from international experience during the workshop.

 

Natasha Bodden, Policy Analyst in the Freedom of Information Unit of the Cayman Islands Government, emphasized to workshop participants the value of public engagement throughout the process of developing and implementing FOI law. She said:

 

 “There needs to be a process for ensuring the participation of the public in this critical development. The public’s views must be obtained so a system that meets their needs is designed. The effective implementation of FOI legislation is a joint partnership between the government, the holder of information and the public,”

 

At the end of the workshop, attendants recognised nine principles in support of the implementation of FOI:

 

Freedom of information is an important tool for empowering Pacific people to engage in their own development as equal partners with their governments. In the Pacific, freedom of information can be harnessed as a tool for promoting participatory development, strengthening democratic governance, facilitating better government service delivery, supporting decentralization, fostering economic development, promoting public accountability and transparency, supporting responsible and effective media reporting, and promoting and protecting human rights.

Governments should be encouraged to consider developing freedom of information policies, laws or regulations. Access to information policies, laws or regulations and processes need to be designed to serve the public, in urban, rural and outlying island areas and should be simple, cost-effective and user-friendly.

In the absence of legislation, Governments bodies and members of the legislature should proactively and routinely disclose and disseminate more information to the public that would enhance their transparency.

Governments should recognize and work with the media and non state actors (NSAs) as partners in developing and implementing access to information.

Development partners should work with Governments and other non state actors to ensure that legislative drafting assistance is available, upon request, to support Governments that wish to develop an access to information policy, law or regulation.

Development partners should work with Governments to ensure that technical assistance, funding and/or other needed resources are available, upon request, to support Governments and other national implementing bodies who are working to implement an access to information policy, law or regulation.

Efforts should be made to harness information and communication technologies to promote access to information for Pacific peoples, including the radio, internet and television. Initiatives like the information partnership being implemented by the Solomon Islands Government and People First Network provide good models for consideration by Pacific Governments.

The important role that public service broadcasters can play in promoting freedom of information to the public should be recognized and supported with political will and financial resources.

The Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat in partnership with development partners such as the UNDP Pacific Centre and other organizations should continue to work with Forum Islands Countries to support work on developing freedom of information in the region.