(PERIODISTAS/IFEX) – In a 22 August 2004 meeting with the nation’s Senate, PERIODISTAS called for approval of an access to information bill that was passed by the Chamber of Deputies in 2003. Final approval of the bill by the Senate has been delayed, however, and it is currently at risk of being postponed for at […]
(PERIODISTAS/IFEX) – In a 22 August 2004 meeting with the nation’s Senate, PERIODISTAS called for approval of an access to information bill that was passed by the Chamber of Deputies in 2003. Final approval of the bill by the Senate has been delayed, however, and it is currently at risk of being postponed for at least two years.
Since 2001, several non-governmental organisations, including PERIODISTAS, have been promoting the bill, which, if passed, would prohibit restrictions on access to information held by the government, its companies and any public entities under majority government control.
Since its approval by the Chamber of Deputies, Senate commissions have been studying the bill. They have, however, failed to issue a report that would facilitate the Senate’s action on the bill. If the bill’s text is not approved by 30 November it will lose parliamentary status and cannot be presented again for approval within the next two years.
In the meeting, PERIODISTAS emphasised the importance of this law in a democratic society.
