Bill Gives People The Right To Know (Moscow Times)

Image via Wikipedia Bill Gives People The Right To Know
21 January 2009
By Anna Malpas / Staff Writer

The State Duma on Wednesday is to consider in a third and final reading a bill spelling out citizens' right to gain access to government documents and outlining punishments for officials who do not comply. The bill, comparable to freedom of information laws in other countries, would require officials to disclose, upon request, any information controlled by the government -- such as court rulings, budget expenditures and government permits -- that has not been deemed a state secret. The authors of the bill and transparency campaigners said the law could be a powerful tool for citizens in dealing with the country's notoriously reticent bureaucracy and its firm grip on information that, by law, should be in the public domain. "We consider this to be a very positive law that will reduce corruption at all levels and will increase people's trust in the authorities," Valery Komissarov, head of the Duma's Information Policy Committee and one of the bill's authors, told The Moscow Times in an interview Tuesday. The law, which would require federal, regional and municipal officials to respond to citizens' requests for information within 30 days, would reduce corruption by empowering people to ask questions about how budgetary funds are spent, said Komissarov, a deputy with United Russia. Bureaucrats will have more difficulties trying to "pull the wool over people's eyes," he said. While various existing laws oblige officials to disclose information about the government's activities to their employers -- taxpayers -- the bill attempts to spell out in a single law citizens' right to know, as well as punishments for bureaucrats who refuse to cooperate.

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[foianet]Pending the Russian FOI Law in 2009

Image by World Economic Forum via FlickrSent: Thursday, January 22, 2009 10:05 AM
Subject: Re: [foianet]Pending the Russian FOI Law in 2009

Hello to everyone!

It's really looks like in 2009 year Russia will have Freedom of Information Law as last!
On January 21, 2009 the State Duma (lower chamber of the Russian Parliament) adopted in a final third reading access to information bill in the framework of anti-corruption russian program. Bill on Providing of Access to Information on State Authorities and Local Governments Activity (Access to Information Bill or Freedom of Information Bill) will provide citizen's right to know through the duty of federal, regional and municipal officials to disclose any information (except classified information) upon citizen's request and also by publication information on State and Local Authorities activity in mass media and via Internet.
The FOI Law will require officials to respond citizen's request for information within 30 days and will give some other ways for access to information such as informational stands in the federal, regional and municipal authorities' buildings, libraries, archives and federal, regional and municipal authorities meetings where citizens will able to be. The Law will take into effect on January 1, 2010 if President Dmitry Medvedev will sign the Law.
Indeed that will be the huge event for Russia!

Marina Savintseva
Lawyer,
TR-Russia, Moscow