Viena Policy Conference 2015
Helen Darbishire2020-02-14T11:17:20+01:00Date: 29-30 October, 2015 Location: Hotel Meliá Vienna – Donau City Straße 7, 1220, Vienna
Access Info welcomes Cyprus’ commitment to strong FOI law
Helen Darbishire2018-11-13T10:04:38+01:00Madrid, 21 October 2015 - Access Info Europe has welcomed Cypriot Justice Minister Ionas Nicolaou’s commitment to adopt a strong access to information (Freedom of Information) law that will be “one of the best in the European Union”. The pro-transparency organisation, headquartered in Madrid, urges the Cypriot government to act on this promise, noting that in order to bring the law into line with European and international standards, the government should recognise the fundamental nature of the right, including all public bodies in the law, reducing the number of exceptions, and removing other obstacles such as the requirement to provide
Acceso a la información y regulación del lobby: prioridades políticas de urgencia
Helen Darbishire2018-11-13T10:11:13+01:00eldiario.es | 20/10/2015 Spanish – Sólo a través del acceso a la información pública es posible saber quién está forjando las decisiones que determinan nuestra vida y asegurarnos de que nuestros representantes públicos tienen en cuenta una pluralidad de voces que garantiza un sistema democrático verdaderamente representativo. Read more...
Open Government Partnership Global Summit | 2015
Helen Darbishire2018-11-13T10:11:14+01:00Date: Tuesday, October 27, 2015 – 9:00am to Thursday, October 29, 2015 – 4:00pm Location: Mexico
Ministry defends planned freedom of information law
Helen Darbishire2018-11-13T10:11:14+01:00Cyprus Mail | 20/10/2015 English – Cyprus aspires to have among the best possible freedom of information (FOI) legislation in the EU, Justice Minister Ionas Nicolaou has said, and place restrictions on access to information only in cases where it was necessary. Read more...
Access Info issues formal complaint on Spain’s lack of commitment to the OGP
Helen Darbishire2018-11-13T10:11:14+01:00Madrid, 16 October 2015 - Access Info Europe submitted a formal complaint to the Open Government Partnership (OGP) in relation to the Spanish government’s manifest lack of commitment towards the principles and values supported by the Alliance, of which Spain is member since 2011. Access Info’s complaint is specifically structured around four key obstacles to transparency, participation and accountability which constantly complicate collaboration and cooperation with the government when trying advance in open government matters: No communications mechanisms have been set up to enable dialogue and facilitate consultation processes with civil society; this includes the absence of an identifiable contact
Educación esconde tras una fórmula compleja y opaca los criterios con los que adjudica las becas
Helen Darbishire2018-11-13T10:11:14+01:00eldiario.es | 03/10/2015 Spanish – Un estudiante solicita una beca al Ministerio de Educación a principios de curso. Espera unos meses hasta que, si todo va bien, le conceden una parte sin decirle cuánto recibirá en total. Espera otro tanto y le dan otra cuantía provisional. Ya hacia el final del curso, recibe la resolución definitiva con el último pago. Sólo entonces se entera de cuál es la cantidad completa de su beca y, de una parte de ella, no le dicen de dónde viene la cifra. Si quiere comprobar que no es ni más ni menos de lo que
Civil society calls for reform of trialogues in a letter to EU Commission, Parliament and Council
Helen Darbishire2020-01-29T11:25:49+01:00Madrid, 30 September 2015 - Access Info Europe along with European Digital Rights (EDRi) and other 16 signatory organisations, today sent an open letter to European Parliament President Martin Schulz, Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Council Secretary-General Jeppe Tranholm-Mikkelsen, calling for a major reform of the so-called “trialogues”. The letter calls for public access to be granted to the trialogue meetings, and for the systematic and timely publication of all trialogue documents. The letter remains open to signatories. “Citizens should be able to scrutinise EU decision-making,” said Andreas Pavlou, Campaigner Researcher at Access Info Europe. “The lack of transparency around
Time to get serious on Transparency!
Helen Darbishire2021-06-04T12:33:04+02:00Madrid, 28 September 2015, By Helen Darbishire, Executive Director, Access Info Europe I am sitting in the Access Info Europe office in Madrid and staring in dismay at a document from the European Commission which seems to have more black lines covering the information it contains than anything useful. Dismayed and also amazed that the reason for not giving out information about a possibly problematic public procurement process in Serbia – a waste sludge processing plant to be funded with European taxpayer’s money – is apparently the personal privacy of those responsible for the decision. It’s 28 September 2015, the
Por un derecho a saber
Helen Darbishire2020-02-14T11:17:55+01:00Yorokobu | 11/09/2015 Spanish – En 1962 una bióloga norteamericana, Rachel Carson, publicó un libro que haría historia. Se trataba de Silent Spring, donde, en síntesis, denunciaba que el DDT no se limitaba a ser un pesticida sino un biocida, un veneno que afectaba a todos los seres humanos [...] Este problema dio lugar a la enunciación del denominado derecho a saber. [...] Sin embargo, aunque nos parezca un derecho básico y elemental, no se trata de un derecho explícitamente enunciado, sino que para su ejercicio se ha de recurrir a otras piezas de la ley. Read more…