Acting SG Maiava speech on FOI
Acting SG Maiava speech on FOI
4 Aug 2006 00:40:38 REGIONAL NGO WORKSHOP ON THE RIGHT TO INFORMATION
JJ's on the Park, Suva, Fiji
4 August 2006
OPENING REMARKS BY MR IOSEFA MAIAVA
ACTING SECRETARY GENERAL,
PACIFIC ISLANDS FORUM SECRETARIAT,
Distinguished Participants, NGO Representatives from the Pacific Islands, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am delighted to make these opening remarks at this important workshop on the Right to Information -- important because the right to information is indeed a basic human right.
2. I would like to acknowledge of course the collaboration of UNDP's Pacific Sub-Regional Centre, the Pacific Regional Rights Resource Team (RRRT) and the Pacific Centre for Public Integrity (PCPI), and the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), in making this workshop and the gathering of NGO representatives from the Pacific, possible.
3. I have been asked to provide some thoughts on the importance of the Right to Information specifically, human rights in general, and on related governance issues in the Pacific Plan, which was adopted by Forum Leaders in Port Moresby last year. Some of you may not be all that familiar with the Pacific Plan so I have brought copies if you are interested.
4. In calling for and approving the Pacific Plan, our Leaders have recognized that the Pacific has moved, is being moved, or is moving into a period of new and serious challenges ,challenges for which our current approaches and commitments are deemed inadequate. To meet these challenges, our Leaders' vision in the Pacific Plan calls for:
o A region of peace, harmony, security and economic prosperity for all; diversity of Pacific cultures, traditions and religious beliefs, to be valued, honored and developed; a region respected for its governance, sustainable management of its resources, full observance of democratic values and its defence and promotion of human rights; partnerships with neighbors and beyond & to improve our understanding and communications and ensure a sustainable existence for all.
5. Leaders also called for a Pacific Plan to pursue the four key goals of economic growth, sustainable development, security and good governance, and to do so through greater regional cooperation and integration. In a nutshell the approach spoken of is one that takes us to a higher or deeper level of regionalism, moving from (voluntary) cooperation to regional services and integration, as a strategy for helping achieve the four goals, including good governance.
6. The Pacific Plan contains many initiatives that should be of interest to you in this workshop. For example, Initiative 12.2 supports Forum Principles of Good Leadership and Accountability, which include a clear undertaking to make information available to Parliament and the public on budgets, financial management, loans etc. Freedom of Information and Media are an example of good governance mechanisms envisaged under Pacific Plan Initiative 12.3. Initiative 12.6, on participative democracy and consultative decision making, simply won't succeed without better access to and use of information. And Initiative 12.5, which provides for assistance with the ratification, implementation and reporting on international and regional human rights-based conventions, not only requires better information, it also highlight the integral link between information and human-rights. Then there are initiatives on statistical information systems, on resources management, on security and on culture and economic growth, which can only be enhanced through greater recognition of the fundamental role played by information in good governance.
7. Access to information, through Information Disclosure Policies (IDP) and ultimately, comprehensive Freedom of Information legislation, of course provide a number of benefits to the community and government that goes beyond the successful implementation of Pacific Plan. They
o Underpin all other human rights;
o Support people-centered policy-making and its effective implementation;
o Build public trust in government;
o Challenge corruption;
o Make electoral democracy meaningful;
o Boost media capacity;
o Create a transparent and competitive economic environment; and
o Increase accountability of private actors.
8. I understand this was also the thinking at a UNDP sponsored seminar on fostering the right to know in developing countries, held in Oslo, Norway, in May of this year. Participants at that seminar affirmed the importance of the right to information in strengthening governance and helping poor and marginalized people. One of the conclusions at the meeting said, and I quote: There is a real need for countries to develop right to information strategies to support their poverty reduction/governance programming. By helping hold governments accountable to everyone including the marginalized, information when available and properly used can indeed have a vital political and developmental impact on the lives of the people.
9. To put the connection rather simplicitly, good governance is good leadership and good management, and by good we mean accountable (to the governed) and transparency (or openness). It is difficult for the governed to hold the governors accountable unless there is transparency, or unless the relevant information is made available.
10. I am aware of course that several bodies are already working collaboratively in the region to encourage discussion of Freedom of Information principles and moves, at an appropriate pace of course, toward legislation to create FoI regimes. The Forum Secretariat is liaising closely with the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, UNDP's Pacific Sub Regional Centre and the Pacific Centre for Public Integrity (PCPI), to support and provide advice on their work in this area and ensure close coordination is maintained. The Secretariat is aware that Fiji is working towards enactment of FoI legislation.
11. Currently among the members of the Forum, only Australia and New Zealand have freedom of information legislation. No Forum Island Country has any information disclosure or freedom of information law. But within the FICs, there is already some constitutional protection for freedom of information. The Papua New Guinea constitution 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. Solomon Islands' draft federal constitution includes a specific right to access information. Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu constitutions recognize the freedom to seek and receive information. FSM, Fiji, Palau, PNG, Marshall Islands and Tonga guarantee the freedom of the press; but the constitutions of four PICs, the Cook Islands, Nauru, Samoa and Vanuatu do not guarantee freedom of the media or freedom to communicate ideas and information. The current Fiji government has said that it will table a Freedom of Information Bill shortly. The Solomon Islands government which came into power early this year has a freedom of information legislation in its legislative program.
12. I understand that in the Cook Islands, a draft Bill was developed and has been submitted to Cabinet. I also understand that media groups in PNG developed a draft freedom of information legislation in 1999 but no action has yet been taken on the draft. The local chapter of Transparency International in Vanuatu is currently finalising a model Freedom of Information Bill.
13. So there are certain elements of information disclosure or the right to information that are already enshrined in the constitutions of Pacific Island Countries. The Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat is also putting together an information disclosure policy because we believe if we are going to convince our members, we need to start with ourselves at the Secretariat.
14. But we also believe that there is a lot of work that needs to be done before Forum member countries do get into information disclosure/Freedom of Information legislations. These need to be pursued in various phases, particularly if there is to be capacity to make use of the legislation and of the information.
15. To underline the challenge ahead, I have two anecdotes to share with you this morning. First, it took U-K 50 years to develop a Freedom of Information legislation and India had only enacted its Right to Information Act in 2005. Second, when the former Ombudswoman of Vanuatu released in public some detailed information on corrupt practices that were going on in Vanuatu several years ago, there was hardly a murmur in the public arena; indeed many of the scams in the Pacific, costing the public billions of dollars all go by without any public outcry.
16. If PICs are going to successfully implement information disclosure policies or freedom of information legislation, it is imperative that there is wide consultation and education. Our leaders, including politicians must be given the opportunity to understand the need for the freedom of information legislation. And the public must be given the opportunity to want to have and use laws and information, to have the political maturity that is needed in order to make use of what information disclosure policies and FoI legislation we will put into place. This is to say that information infrastructure, and perhaps even more importantly a political culture that is demanding of information and of transparency and accountability, have got to be developed as well if disclosure policies and FoI legislation are to have easy passage and implementation.
17. And we must do all of thus in a way that is manageable and appropriate for our small states, not just one that is copied from elsewhere. Global knowledge and experience is invaluable but so is local context.
18. There are things that we can do from a regional standpoint that will help our cause. Regional information infrastructure and regulation to improve access to technology and information is one. Model policies and legislation can be made available for adaptation by countries together with some drafting assistance to go with it. There are suggestions in the PP which have been taken up by Ministers and many agencies of the possibility of regional offices of or support for audit and ombudsman.
19. But it is workshops like this one, involving NGOs, non-state actors and the media, who in one form or another represent public interest and participation in political governance, which are going to have a very important role in helping us identify what we need; and how best we move forward to take our place in this so-called information and knowledge society. So I hope you will take this excellent opportunity with all the seriousness it deserves.
20. I wish you a most successful workshop and hope that your deliberations and decisions will help improve access to and use of information by our Pacific communities. I have no doubt whatsoever, that your success will contribute tremendously to the achievement of our Leaders' vision for a Pacific that was respected for its governance and for its adherence to and support for democratic values and human rights and through that, the enhancement of the economic and social well-being of all the peoples of the Pacific region.
God bless.
4 Aug 2006 00:40:38 REGIONAL NGO WORKSHOP ON THE RIGHT TO INFORMATION
JJ's on the Park, Suva, Fiji
4 August 2006
OPENING REMARKS BY MR IOSEFA MAIAVA
ACTING SECRETARY GENERAL,
PACIFIC ISLANDS FORUM SECRETARIAT,
Distinguished Participants, NGO Representatives from the Pacific Islands, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am delighted to make these opening remarks at this important workshop on the Right to Information -- important because the right to information is indeed a basic human right.
2. I would like to acknowledge of course the collaboration of UNDP's Pacific Sub-Regional Centre, the Pacific Regional Rights Resource Team (RRRT) and the Pacific Centre for Public Integrity (PCPI), and the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), in making this workshop and the gathering of NGO representatives from the Pacific, possible.
3. I have been asked to provide some thoughts on the importance of the Right to Information specifically, human rights in general, and on related governance issues in the Pacific Plan, which was adopted by Forum Leaders in Port Moresby last year. Some of you may not be all that familiar with the Pacific Plan so I have brought copies if you are interested.
4. In calling for and approving the Pacific Plan, our Leaders have recognized that the Pacific has moved, is being moved, or is moving into a period of new and serious challenges ,challenges for which our current approaches and commitments are deemed inadequate. To meet these challenges, our Leaders' vision in the Pacific Plan calls for:
o A region of peace, harmony, security and economic prosperity for all; diversity of Pacific cultures, traditions and religious beliefs, to be valued, honored and developed; a region respected for its governance, sustainable management of its resources, full observance of democratic values and its defence and promotion of human rights; partnerships with neighbors and beyond & to improve our understanding and communications and ensure a sustainable existence for all.
5. Leaders also called for a Pacific Plan to pursue the four key goals of economic growth, sustainable development, security and good governance, and to do so through greater regional cooperation and integration. In a nutshell the approach spoken of is one that takes us to a higher or deeper level of regionalism, moving from (voluntary) cooperation to regional services and integration, as a strategy for helping achieve the four goals, including good governance.
6. The Pacific Plan contains many initiatives that should be of interest to you in this workshop. For example, Initiative 12.2 supports Forum Principles of Good Leadership and Accountability, which include a clear undertaking to make information available to Parliament and the public on budgets, financial management, loans etc. Freedom of Information and Media are an example of good governance mechanisms envisaged under Pacific Plan Initiative 12.3. Initiative 12.6, on participative democracy and consultative decision making, simply won't succeed without better access to and use of information. And Initiative 12.5, which provides for assistance with the ratification, implementation and reporting on international and regional human rights-based conventions, not only requires better information, it also highlight the integral link between information and human-rights. Then there are initiatives on statistical information systems, on resources management, on security and on culture and economic growth, which can only be enhanced through greater recognition of the fundamental role played by information in good governance.
7. Access to information, through Information Disclosure Policies (IDP) and ultimately, comprehensive Freedom of Information legislation, of course provide a number of benefits to the community and government that goes beyond the successful implementation of Pacific Plan. They
o Underpin all other human rights;
o Support people-centered policy-making and its effective implementation;
o Build public trust in government;
o Challenge corruption;
o Make electoral democracy meaningful;
o Boost media capacity;
o Create a transparent and competitive economic environment; and
o Increase accountability of private actors.
8. I understand this was also the thinking at a UNDP sponsored seminar on fostering the right to know in developing countries, held in Oslo, Norway, in May of this year. Participants at that seminar affirmed the importance of the right to information in strengthening governance and helping poor and marginalized people. One of the conclusions at the meeting said, and I quote: There is a real need for countries to develop right to information strategies to support their poverty reduction/governance programming. By helping hold governments accountable to everyone including the marginalized, information when available and properly used can indeed have a vital political and developmental impact on the lives of the people.
9. To put the connection rather simplicitly, good governance is good leadership and good management, and by good we mean accountable (to the governed) and transparency (or openness). It is difficult for the governed to hold the governors accountable unless there is transparency, or unless the relevant information is made available.
10. I am aware of course that several bodies are already working collaboratively in the region to encourage discussion of Freedom of Information principles and moves, at an appropriate pace of course, toward legislation to create FoI regimes. The Forum Secretariat is liaising closely with the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, UNDP's Pacific Sub Regional Centre and the Pacific Centre for Public Integrity (PCPI), to support and provide advice on their work in this area and ensure close coordination is maintained. The Secretariat is aware that Fiji is working towards enactment of FoI legislation.
11. Currently among the members of the Forum, only Australia and New Zealand have freedom of information legislation. No Forum Island Country has any information disclosure or freedom of information law. But within the FICs, there is already some constitutional protection for freedom of information. The Papua New Guinea constitution 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. Solomon Islands' draft federal constitution includes a specific right to access information. Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu constitutions recognize the freedom to seek and receive information. FSM, Fiji, Palau, PNG, Marshall Islands and Tonga guarantee the freedom of the press; but the constitutions of four PICs, the Cook Islands, Nauru, Samoa and Vanuatu do not guarantee freedom of the media or freedom to communicate ideas and information. The current Fiji government has said that it will table a Freedom of Information Bill shortly. The Solomon Islands government which came into power early this year has a freedom of information legislation in its legislative program.
12. I understand that in the Cook Islands, a draft Bill was developed and has been submitted to Cabinet. I also understand that media groups in PNG developed a draft freedom of information legislation in 1999 but no action has yet been taken on the draft. The local chapter of Transparency International in Vanuatu is currently finalising a model Freedom of Information Bill.
13. So there are certain elements of information disclosure or the right to information that are already enshrined in the constitutions of Pacific Island Countries. The Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat is also putting together an information disclosure policy because we believe if we are going to convince our members, we need to start with ourselves at the Secretariat.
14. But we also believe that there is a lot of work that needs to be done before Forum member countries do get into information disclosure/Freedom of Information legislations. These need to be pursued in various phases, particularly if there is to be capacity to make use of the legislation and of the information.
15. To underline the challenge ahead, I have two anecdotes to share with you this morning. First, it took U-K 50 years to develop a Freedom of Information legislation and India had only enacted its Right to Information Act in 2005. Second, when the former Ombudswoman of Vanuatu released in public some detailed information on corrupt practices that were going on in Vanuatu several years ago, there was hardly a murmur in the public arena; indeed many of the scams in the Pacific, costing the public billions of dollars all go by without any public outcry.
16. If PICs are going to successfully implement information disclosure policies or freedom of information legislation, it is imperative that there is wide consultation and education. Our leaders, including politicians must be given the opportunity to understand the need for the freedom of information legislation. And the public must be given the opportunity to want to have and use laws and information, to have the political maturity that is needed in order to make use of what information disclosure policies and FoI legislation we will put into place. This is to say that information infrastructure, and perhaps even more importantly a political culture that is demanding of information and of transparency and accountability, have got to be developed as well if disclosure policies and FoI legislation are to have easy passage and implementation.
17. And we must do all of thus in a way that is manageable and appropriate for our small states, not just one that is copied from elsewhere. Global knowledge and experience is invaluable but so is local context.
18. There are things that we can do from a regional standpoint that will help our cause. Regional information infrastructure and regulation to improve access to technology and information is one. Model policies and legislation can be made available for adaptation by countries together with some drafting assistance to go with it. There are suggestions in the PP which have been taken up by Ministers and many agencies of the possibility of regional offices of or support for audit and ombudsman.
19. But it is workshops like this one, involving NGOs, non-state actors and the media, who in one form or another represent public interest and participation in political governance, which are going to have a very important role in helping us identify what we need; and how best we move forward to take our place in this so-called information and knowledge society. So I hope you will take this excellent opportunity with all the seriousness it deserves.
20. I wish you a most successful workshop and hope that your deliberations and decisions will help improve access to and use of information by our Pacific communities. I have no doubt whatsoever, that your success will contribute tremendously to the achievement of our Leaders' vision for a Pacific that was respected for its governance and for its adherence to and support for democratic values and human rights and through that, the enhancement of the economic and social well-being of all the peoples of the Pacific region.
God bless.
