Uganda: ARTICLE 19 welcomes Access to Information Bill, but says more work is needed
ARTICLE 19 Global Campaign for Free Expression has welcomed the Access to Information Bill tabled by the Ugandan Government but signalled that more work is needed to bring it in line with international standards. "On the whole, the Bill represents a positive effort to operationalise the constitutional guarantee of freedom of information. ARTICLE 19 particularly welcomes the provisions on the duty to publish information whenever this is in the public interest, and the protection granted to 'whistleblowers'. At the same time, the Bill still fails to conform fully to international standards on freedom of information."
IFEX - News from the international freedom of expression community
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PRESS RELEASE/ALERT - UGANDA
1 June 2004
ARTICLE 19 welcomes Access to Information Bill, but says more work is needed
SOURCE: ARTICLE 19, London
(ARTICLE 19/IFEX) - The following is a 27 May 2004 ARTICLE 19 press release:
In a Memorandum released today, ARTICLE 19, Global Campaign for Free
Expression, welcomes the Access to Information Bill tabled by the Ugandan
Government but signals that more work is needed to bring it in line with
international standards.
On the whole, the Bill represents a positive effort to operationalise the
constitutional guarantee of freedom of information. ARTICLE 19 particularly
welcomes the provisions on the duty to publish information whenever this is
in the public interest, and the protection granted to 'whistleblowers'.
At the same time, the Bill still fails to conform fully to international
standards on freedom of information. For example, only citizens, not
everyone, enjoy the right of access, and the exceptions regime remains
unsatisfactory in its vague definitions and lack of a proper harm test. We
are also still concerned that the Bill fails adequately to regulate the fees
that may be charged for access, and that there is no provision for training,
education or public awareness raising on freedom of information issues.
Our concerns about these and some other matters are outlined in detail in
ARTICLE 19's Memorandum, which can be found at
http://www.article19.org/docimages/1774.doc.
Notes:
1. The Access to Information Bill, 2004 was published by the Ugandan
Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting in April 2004.
For further information, contact Peter Noorlander, Legal Officer, ARTICLE
19, 33 Islington High St., London N19LH, U.K., tel: +44 207 278 9292, fax:
+44 207 713 1356, e-mail: [email protected], [email protected], Internet:
http://www.article19.org
The information contained in this press release/alert is the sole
responsibility of ARTICLE 19. In citing this material for broadcast or
publication, please credit ARTICLE 19.
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