Two years on, RTI reaches out to the provinces
As Sri Lanka marked two years since the inception of the Right to Information ( RTI) Act, on February 3, this ye a r, t he RTI Commission (RTIC) announced the commencement of public sittings and the hearing of appeals in the country’s provinces.
On January 19, the RTIC held its first public sitting and hearing of appeals in Panama, Ampara, in the Eastern Province, attended by the District Secretary, Ampara, and the Divisional Secretaries of Lahugala, Siyambalanduwa, Damana and Pothuvil, along with their officers as well as large numbers of community activists in the province. The sessions were addressed by the Chairman, Commissioners and the Director General of the RTIC as well as the District Secretary, Divisional Secretaries and community activists.
In a media release, the RTIC said discussions conducted in Sinhala and Tamil focused on the successes and challenges of the RTI process, with villagers explaining how they had used the RTI Act to obtain relief for their communities. Obstacles to the obtaining of information, such as delays in government offices, bureaucratic processes and the hostile attitudes of some officials were also discussed in detail. The RTIC, thereafter, held appeal hearings in the province, concluding those appeals to the satisfaction of the parties.
The RTIC also held a soft launch of two of its trilingual publications accessible on the website of the Commission (www.rticommission.lk). Volume I con- tains Orders of the RTIC delivered during 2017- 2018, with several significant principles, keywords and an Index of a broader range of Decisions. In delivering these Orders, the RTIC has endeavoured to maintain the principle of equity between the Public Authority and the appellant, while taking into consideration the fact that the greater weight of resources and power lies with the State, rather than with an individual citizen. Volume II contains Reflections on Sri Lanka’s RTI Act and RTI regime written by eminent contributors in the fields of Law, the Media, the Public Service and academia.
The RTIC’s next public sittings and appeal sessions are to be held in Hatton and Angunukolapelessa in the coming months. Selection of the districts has been with a view to targeting marginalised/isolated/war-affected communities in Sri Lanka, so that citizens not yet exposed to RTI will be able to understand the benefits of using the Act, the RTIC stressed. The discussions have been planned in order that the RTIC acts as a facilitator in opening up dialogues between communities and government officers with regard to a cooperative and harmonious process in using the RTI Act, it further noted.
As of December 31, 2018, the RTIC had 1,030 appeals before it, of which 654 appeals had been concluded. In the remainder of pending appeals, interim orders had been issued by the RTIC in a majority of cases, releasing information in stages. As the RTIC has been conscious of the need to enunciate RTI principles in the initial years of functioning, its decisions overwhelmingly reflect pro-public interest and information disclosure principles, it stressed. An overriding factor has been the consideration of the public interest which the RTIC is statutorily mandated to take into account.
While the slow transformation of an ‘information-closed’ culture to an ‘information-open’ culture has been initiated, challenges remain, the RTIC observed. The duty to give information proactively needs to be manifested far more diligent- ly by Public Authorities. Furthermore, the enactment of new Laws that are deliberately placed beyond the scrutiny of the RTI regime remains of particular concern. Nevertheless, an encouraging factor is the support and interest of ordinary citizens from every part of the land, who have exercised their ‘Right to Information’ with commendable enthusiasm during the period in review.
“In the interests of further development of the RTI culture through an Act which was 14 long years in the making in Sri Lanka, we hope that these positive trends will continue,” the RTIC noted.
Obstacles to the obtaining of information, such as delays in government offices, bureaucratic processes and the hostile attitudes of some officials were also discussed in detail. The RTIC, thereafter, held appeal hearings in the province, concluding those appeals to the satisfaction of the parties.