LAHORE: Members of the civil society on Friday demanded that the Punjab government implement Right to Information Law in Punjab immediately They made this demand at a rally and press conference at the Lahore Press Club The conference was organised by the Coalition on Right to Information (CRTI) a platform of 20 civil society organisations […]
IN Pakistan, whenever our bureaucracies draft any law or document, it always seems ambiguous and controversial. The Punjab Freedom of Information Act is a good example, as it is a very confused act. This Act is drafted by bureaucracy without consulting stakeholders, while media and civil society representatives are available for technical guidance. In this […]
PESHAWAR: The government delayed the passage of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Right to Information Bill, 2013, in the assembly at the eleventh hour on Monday when Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs Israrullah Khan Gandapur agreed to the opposition’s suggestion that the draft should be referred to the House’s select committee for examination and recommendations, instead […]
KARACHI: Civic agencies should appoint a senior official as a focal person responsible for providing information to the general public, and provision of information be made a rule rather than an exception, said an activist of an NGO working on civic issues. As a rule, the civic agency officials like most of their colleagues in […]
The government of Punjab has invited comments from the public on its draft ‘Punjab Freedom of Information Act’, which has been approved in principle by the Punjab cabinet. It is a step in the right direction but major changes are required if the objectives of improving transparency, accountability and governance are to be met. Overall […]
One of the greatest checks on excessive government power is the right of all citizens to get information about what their representatives are up to. The general principle which should be followed, but rarely is, when it comes to freedom of information laws is that all information should be available to the public except for […]
KARACHI: Being responsible citizens and taxpayers, it is our right to know where our money is spent. Article 19A of the Constitution of Pakistan grants one the right to access information in all matters of public importance. The information can be used to support complaints regarding the operations of any public department to make a […]
ISLAMABAD: The Senate committee on information and broadcasting on Wednesday approved the draft of a much-awaited “Freedom of Information Law”. The committee finalised the draft after eight months of deliberations. It ignored reservations of the defence authorities. The draft was prepared by the ministry on the recommendations of a sub-committee headed by Farhatullah Babar, the […]
In a YouTube-less Pakistan, where children and young women are punished for their freedom of expression while radical, militant societal elements are given prime time coverage A parent is told at a parent–teacher meeting that her daughter has been careless lately. When asked to describe and draw an eggplant in science class, she left the […]
The Right to Information (RTI) Ordinance is the first major accomplishment of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led coalition government in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P). The only such law in the country, the RTI paves the way for a more transparent and vibrant democracy where citizens have access to all government documents and can monitor the expenditure of their […]
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Right to Information Ordinance 2013, promulgated by the provincial PTI government, is a complex piece of legislation which will require time to properly analyse and digest. And, as with all such laws, good intentions will not be enough and will have to be followed by effective implementation. These caveats aside, the law […]
PESHAWAR: The government has amended its draft on the Right to Information (RTI) Ordinance, after the initial blueprint was criticised for certain inadequacies. K-P Governor Engineer Shaukatullah Khan, who signed the ordinance forwarded by the provincial government on August 13, was quoted by an official source as saying: “I have signed the ordinance because the […]
PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government will unveil the right to information ordinance on Aug 18 (Sunday) during a special function to be attended by provincial Chief Minister Pervez Khattak and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan.The ordinance will come into force with immediate effect, say the relevant officials. The officials told Dawn on Thursday that Khyber […]
‘FREEDOM of information is a fundamental human right, the touchstone of all the freedoms to which the UN is consecrated.’ (Resolution 59(1) of the UNGA). The main theme behind the concept of freedom of information is that public institutions have an obligation to disclose information and every member of the public has a corresponding right […]
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