March 27, 2008 Jakarta, Indonesia Access to Information is a fundamental human right.  To guarantee the people’s right to access information held by public authorities, we need a strong legal guarantee. The Freedom of Information Act, which is still under debate in the Parliament and has nearly reached the final stages of becoming law, will play a crucial role in providing the legal guarantee of the right to information for the Indonesian people. A study conducted jointly by the Institute for the Studies on the Free Flow of Information and Toby Mendel of Article 19 in January 2008 identified the lessons learned and the challenges faced by some regions in implementing their local transparency laws. The study makes recommendations for improving the operation of the transparency laws in those regions, as well as recommending actions the authorities need to take to successfully implement the Freedom of Information Act. The study also includes a detailed legal analysis of the current draft Indonesian Freedom of Information Act. Objectives (a) To disseminate the results of the study to stakeholders, especially the recommendations on the steps that should be taken to successfully implement the Freedom of Information Act and the actions needed to overcome the obstacles and problems in implementing the regional transparency laws. (b) To enrich the results of the study by gathering suggestions from roundtable participants on what other steps should be taken to implement the FOI Act and improve the operation of the regional transparency laws. (c) Officials from central and regional government responsible for implementing the FOI and transparency laws are able to apply information from the study and the roundtable discussion in order to assist their work. (d) To motivate local NGOs to take part in activities to support the implementation of the regional transparency laws, so that it is more effective. Please click here for the agenda (PDF 89 kb). Materials News Coverage |
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