Supreme Court of Canada rules access to information not a constitutional right

The Supreme Court of Canada has taken a small step toward recognizing that citizens sometimes need access to government documents to exercise freedom of expression, but stopped short of calling it a broad constitutional right.

On a practical level, Thursday’s ruling means that, after 13 years, it is still uncertain whether the public will ever learn details of an OPP report into the botched prosecution of two men charged with murdering reputed mobster Domenic Racco.

On a broader level, the long-awaited decision leaves Canada eclipsed by countries such as South Africa, Norway and Bulgaria, which have made access to information a component of their constitutions.

“We don’t have that and our Supreme Court isn’t willing to take us there either,” said Paul Schabas, a lawyer representing the Canadian Newspaper Association and other media organizations intervening in the case.

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D.C. Open Government Coalition plans its first meeting

From Melissa Davenport, executive director of D.C. Open Government Coalition:

Please save the date for the first organizational meeting of the D.C. Open Government Coalition:

When: Tuesday, June 23rd, at 5:30 p.m.
Where: Ropes & Gray offices (located at Metro Center, 700 12th St. NW, Suite 900)

The Coalition will be working to increase transparency and access to government information in the District of Columbia. We welcome anyone interested in helping to set the Coalition's initial agenda and look forward to your participation in refining our focus and thinking about how we can best have an impact in this area. We will also establish the Coalition's new Board of Directors.
In addition, at this meeting the Coalition will release its first publication, a citizens' guide to the D.C. Freedom of Information Act.

Please join us! And don't hesitate to be in touch with any questions or suggestions.

Conference participants develop plan of action for open governments

The Carter Center in conjunction with other organizations held a conference in Peru where more than 115 representatives from 18 countries discussed obstacles and potential solutions to the right of access to public information in the Americas. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter spoke on the final conference day and reminded participants that "access to information can change the landscape of society."

Participants in a conference on the right of access to information released today their findings and plan of action to advance the right in the Americas.

The Americas Regional Plan of Action provides a blueprint for the regional and international community, states, and non-state actors to establish, develop, and nurture the right of access to information in the Americas and calls on them to commit to the plan in furtherance of our common objective. The regional document serves as an annex to last year's global Atlanta Declaration and Plan of Action.

The conference was held April 28-30, 2009, in Lima, Peru, and was organized by The Carter Center in collaboration with the Organization of American States, the Andean Jurists Commission, and the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas. More than 115 representatives from government, civil society, media, private sector, regional intergovernmental organizations, international and regional financial institutions, and donors from 18 countries in the region came together to consider the main obstacles and potential solutions to advance the right of access to information in the Americas.

More here.

To read the full Americas Regional Findings and Plan of Action and the Atlanta Declaration for the Advancement of the Right of Access to Information, please go here.

AP president urges government to improve journalists' access on battlefield

Tom Curley's comments stemmed from a recent report that revealed how the Department of Defense spends nearly $4.7 billion each year on "influence operations."

The president and CEO of The Associated Press called Friday for the government to increase access to journalists on the battlefield.

“No government will give us our rights if we are not willing to stand up and fight for them,” said Tom Curley, who received the William Allen White National Citation at Kansas University on Friday.

He received the award given by the William Allen White Foundation at the Woodruff Auditorium in the Kansas Union.

More here.