Foto_coalicin_juregui_10-2011

The Spanish government has conceded that it failed to conquer internal resistance to its draft access to infomation law in time to meet the 2008 electoral promises to adopt a law during this legislatrure; elections are scheduled in Spain for 20 November 2011.

Speaking with representatives of the NGO platform, the Coalición Pro Acceso on 10 October 2011, Spain’s Minister of the Presidency regretted the delays. The Coalition members gave feedback on the draft approved and made public by the Spanish Cabinet on 29 July 2011, including the need to have the right to information apply to all information and all public bodies, and to create an independent oversight body.

Both of Spain’s main political parties proposed a draft access to information law during the summer of 2011, pledging to adopt it if they win the elections.

The Coalición Pro Acces’s comments regarding the contents of the draft law stated, amongst other things, the need to not exclude any kind of information and the need to create an independant body to guarentee the right. The representatives of the Coalición Pro Acceso emphasised the importance of recognising Access to Information as a fundamental right, recognised by the UN Human Rights Committee in July 2011.

The Coalición promised to send a document with all of their comments on the draft law.

Photo: (left to right) Carlos Cordero, Access Info Europe, Jesús Lizcano, Transparencia Internacional España, Ramón Jáuregui, Ministro de la Presidencia; Ana Etchenique, CECU ; Helen Darbishire, Access Info Europe; María Ángeles López Lax, Asociación para la Comunicación e Información Medioambiental; Victoria Anderica, Access Info Europe; María Ángeles Ahumada, Ministerio de la Presidencia.