Council of Europe Access Treaty
<http://www.access-info.org/?id=12>
4 April 2009
Council of Europe Convention on Access to Documents
Convention will open for signature on 17 June 2009 - is your country
ratification ready?
The Council of Europe Convention on Access to Official Documents was adopted
on 27th November 2008. It will be open for signatures at a meeting of the
Ministers of Justice of the 47 member states of the Council of Europe in
Norway on 16-18 June 2009.
Access Info's position is that although the convention is disappointing and
narrow. The Council of Europe failed to strengthen it in the face of calls
from Europe's parliamentarians, other inter-governmental bodies, information
commissioners and civil society. The convention does, however, set a minimum
standard to which all member states of the Council of Europe should adhere.
The strategy is therefore to promote signatures and rapid ratifications.
Why should I care about the new convention on access to documents? The
convention will be useful or promoting law reform/adoption in a number of
countries as well as for monitoring compliance which remains a significant
problem across Europe with a huge lack of data on, mainly because most
countries don't gather statistics on the number of requests that they
receive and answer. It also sets a minimum standard that should be upheld by
the European Union in reform of its access to documents rules
Further below on this page you can find a history of the campaign that
Access Info ran in cooperation with other civil society groups from across
Europe with all the main campaign documents. First you can read news about
next steps and what you can in your country to use the new Convention to
strengthen your national access to information regime and its implementation
in practice.
________________________________
Promoting Signature and Ratification
Is your country "ratification ready"? Access Info is working with civil
society organisations, information commissioners, and lawyers to evaluate
the laws of the 47 member states of the Council of Europe to assess if they
are ready to sign the convention. If you would join this process and receive
the package of materials for analysing your national law, then please
contact our campaign team by clicking here
<mailto:campaigns@access-info.org?subject=Council%20of%20Europe%20Convention
%20Campaign%20>
or writing to
campaigns<at>access-info.org.
Do you want to call on your government to sign/ratify the Convention?
Go to the Recognise My Right campaign page to find the current status of
signature/ratification of your government and read about what you can do,
like writing letters or supporting your national access to information
group.
________________________________
History of the Campaign for a Stronger Convention on Access to Documents
More than 250 human rights groups working for freedom of information from
across Europe and around the world were joined by parliamentarians,
inter-governmental organisations, information commissioners, academics and
other experts in the right of access to information and members of the
public to call on the Council of Europe to ensure that the world's first
convention on access to information would be a strong as possible. Below you
can find some of the main campaign materials and statement. If you would
like any other information about the campaign, click here to write to Access
Info
<mailto:campaigns@access-info.org?subject=Council%20of%20Europe%20Convention
%20Campaign%20> .
28 November 2008
Council of Europe Has Adopted Contentious Treaty on Access to Information
Civil Society Groups express disappointment, call for strong monitoring body
On 27 November, the Council of Europe adopted the much-criticised Convention
on Access to Official Documents, overriding concerns raised by
parliamentarians representing over 800 million people in the Council of
Europe's 47 member states, and by many civil society organisations and
information commissioners, who called for the treaty to be redrafted. Read
more ...
26 November 2008
Ignoring Public Opinion, Council of Europe Set to Adopt Contentious Treaty
on Access to Information - Leaked documents show plans to reject
Parliamentarians' opposition and adopt Convention on Access to Official
Documents
The Council of Europe has formally refused to make public details of its
plans to adopt, on 27 November, the much-criticised Convention on Access to
Official Documents. The decision to adopt the convention overrides concerns
raised by parliamentarians representing over 800 million people in the
Council of Europe's 47 member states, and by many civil society
organisations, who called for the treaty to be redrafted. Documents obtained
by human rights groups show that the Council of Europe took a decision on 12
November to reject the Parliamentary Assembly's concerns, but this
information has been kept from the public. Under the arcane internal rules
of the Council of Europe, the formal adoption of the treaty on 27 November
should take place "without debate". Read more ...
25 November 2008
Council of Europe Refuses Access to Information on Draft Transparency
Convention Plans to Reject Voice of Parliamentarians
Council of Europe Secretary General Terry Davis this week rejected a request
for information about the 12 November meeting, stating: "Unfortunately, it
is not possible for me to reply to your questions. ... discussions in the
Rapporteur Group on Human Rights are held on a confidential basis and the
ensuing report is also restricted." Read the letter from human rights groups
here and read the response from the Council of Europe here; read the press
release here.
21 November 2008
Sweden accused of Secrecy over Convention on Transparency - Public kept in
the dark on world's first international treaty on access to information
The Swedish government pledged to make the Council of Europe more
transparent but, in spite of this, is overseeing adoption of the world's
first Convention on Access to Official Documents under a shroud of secrecy
which makes it impossible for parliamentarians, civil society and
journalists to know how decisions are being taken. Civil society groups call
on Sweden, with its long tradition of open government, to make public
information about the draft convention. Read more ...
31 October 2008
Call for Action: Council of Europe to decide on draft Convention on Access
to Official Documents on 12 November 2008
Briefing for civil society groups: On12 November 2008 the Council of Europe,
representing 47 European countries, is holding a meeting to consider the
numerous concerns that have been raised about the draft Convention on Access
to Official Documents, which was originally due to be adopted by the end of
2008. This is a last opportunity to urge the governments of Europe not to
adopt a treaty - the world's first treaty on access to information held by
public bodies - which sets overly low standards for this essential
democratic right.
----
Mark Perkins MLIS, MCLIP
www.markperkins.info
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