Workshop on 'Right to Information' organised

Speakers at the workshop on "Right to Information - RTI" urged the government to further strengthen the Freedom of Information (FOI) laws as per the guidelines of United Nations (UN), saying that improvement in FOI laws would improve the level of governance in the country.
The workshop was organised by Shehri-Citizen for a Better Environment at a local hotel on Saturday. Dr Syed Raza Ali Gardezi of Shehri-CBE highlighted the salient features of Article 19-A of the Constitution of Pakistan. He said that Right to Information (ROI) is the mother of all rights given to the citizens secured constitution of Pakistan. "Every citizen has right to know under Article 19-A of the constitution. " Every citizen shall have the right to have access to information in matters of the public importance subject to regulations and reasonable restriction imposed by law," Article 19A sated.
He said that right of access to information is not just a fundamental right of every citizen but also a vital instrument for sustaining a civilised and democratic society. "The right to information is critical to the process of strengthening good governance, accountability and transparency," he mentioned. He said that FOI legislations comprises of laws that guarantee access to data held by the state. He said the government organisations are bound to provide information within 21 days, except where the requested information falls in a category that is exempted from disclosure.
Citing the history of FOI legislations in Pakistan, Dr Raza said that Professor Senator Khursheed Ahmed of Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) was the first parliamentarian who presented a bill of FOI legislations in 1990 but could not get it approved from that parliament.
He said that proper legislation on FOI was made during the tenure of Parvaiz Mushraf in 2002. The legislations were lasted modified in 2010 in Article 19A in the 18th Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan. He said that Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Sindh and Balochistan always have provincial legislations on FOI or RTI. He said that Center for Law and Democracy RTI Ratings have rated Pakistan at 74 among 93 other countries that have FOI legislations. Serbia ranked first, Slovenia second and India third among 93 countries for having batter legislation on FOI," he informed.
Dr Raza also outlined the salient features of writing an FOI application. He also conducted an interactive exercise with the participants filing requests on subjects of their interest. Sameer Hamid Dodhy gave a presentation on the subject and stated as the outset that Article 19 A had given strength to the existing legislation. Describing the efficacy of freedom of information, he compared FOI to sunlight which was the best disinfectant.
He informed about the FOI legislations that comprised law guaranteeing access to data held by the state and their status at the national and provincial level. Sameer Dodhy also explained in detail the process of invoking the FOI Ordinance - guidelines for making an FOI application.
Earlier, Amber Alibhai-General Secretary of Shehri welcomed the participants and introduced the aims and objectives of the workshop. She highlighted the active role Shehri-CBE playing in trying to facilitate good governance by advocating transparency in government functions and informed and proactive role of citizenry in seeking protection of their fundamental rights as enshrined in the constitution and legislation of all sate institutions.