Guyana press association slams parliament over freedom of information legislation
| Guyana press association slams parliament over freedom of information legislation | |
| Published on Saturday, May 31, 2008 | |
By Kevin Lindon Caribbean Net News Guyana Correspondent Email: kevin@caribbeannetnews.com GEORGETOWN, Guyana: The Guyana Press Association (GPA) is participating in a four day seminar organised by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association currently in Guyana. President of the GPA Denis Chabrol, in his presentation to the participants on Friday, said in the widest context of freely accessing information, the GPA objects very strongly to threats being made to legislate the content of the media in and out of the Chamber of the National Assembly. "The yardstick that must be applied at all times is 'is it true.' In that context, we do not find favour with the guidelines and would have wished that your threat to legislate media coverage was non-existent," Chabrol said. Chabrol says there must be a clear definition regarding the access to and freedom of information, including access to parliamentarians. "Often that is the only place where we -- and I mean all of us, not just the media to government representatives -- can have ready access to them. For the National Assembly to seek to engage us in agreeing to rules that can inhibit our access to and interaction with parliamentarians is to abridge the right to an unfettered media. And, it is an old idea that went out with the World Information Order," the GPA president noted. Chabrol said his participation in the discussion comes at a time when Guyana's parliament is yet to debate and possibly approve a Freedom of Information Bill. "We are yet to receive any definitive signals from the government of Guyana and the governing Peoples Progressive Party Civic (PPPC). Thus far, we have been treated to a less than enthusiastic response from the main opposition Peoples National Congress Reform One Guyana (PNCR-1G)," Chabrol said. The GPA president outlined that having the freedom to access information is enshrined in Guyana's constitution under article 146 and Article 19 of the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights. "Freedom of Information legislation will be of immense value to journalists and, by extension, all Guyanese. This legislation will aid us in following in the footsteps of our colleagues in Jamaica to engage in serious investigative journalism," said Chabrol. He said the Press Association believes that the enactment of Freedom of Information legislation will assist the public in making rational decisions in many spheres of individual and national life. "Therefore, the role of the media in governance of the country can be enhanced through journalistic probes that may lead to the relevant authorities themselves launching investigations. It is in this type of check-and-balance as the Fourth Estate that the media -- and by extension the wider public -- require an enabling legislative environment. It will also uncover 'good news' that may redound to the benefit of the state e.g. how remarkably environment friendly our industries are, if we know the figures." Chabrol noted that, given the pace of the local court-system, the GPA believes that a Freedom of Information Commission should be established to adjudicate on disputes arising from the refusal to grant limited or no access to information. The necessity of such a commission was recognized back in late 2006 at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association / Canadian International Development Agency workshop on Freedom of Information Implementation in the Caribbean, held in Dominica. | |
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