No one gets punished when the state withholds the information
ExpiredNo one gets punished when the state witholds the information
Rodoljub Sabic on his experiences as the Information Commissioner
Although the number of people seeking the protection of the Commissioner is constantly growing, Serbian Government failed to administer his resolution.
BELGRADE - On the occasion of marking two years since the Commissioner's Bureau was established, Information Commissioner Rodoljub Sabic said yesterday that there has been improvement in the application of the Free Access to Information Act, but that there are still more reasons to be concerned about than proud of.
In the interview given to the Beta agency, Sabic warned that even two years later there are still no active mechanisms that would ensure quality application of the law or necessary complementary regulations, which are of key importance for the application of the Free Access to Information of Public Importance Act.
- The problems were observed long ago, but they have not been resolved yet. Supervision and accountability mechanisms are not functional. In practice, no action was taken at the request of the competent Ministry of Culture and no one was processed or penalised for the violation of the Free Access to Information Act, says Sabic. The Commissioner added that the Minister for Culture Dragan Kojadinovic informed him that “they have finally started to file requests for the infringement of proceedings”.
Sabic says that the mechanism for the execution of The Commissioner's decisions is not functional either, which, according to the law, is the Government's responsibility. Whenever citizens or the media asked the Serbian Government to administer the resolution of the Commissioner, the Government failed to do so.
- As for the executive power, the problems are, unfortunately, rather obvious - surveillance, accountability, administration of The Commissioner's decisions, education of citizens and civil servants are in the hands of executive power and so far it has not acted appropriately, says Sabic.
According to Sabic, the support that the Commissioner's Bureau receives from civil society is solid. He adds that both the citizens and the media have given positive assessment of the work of the Bureau.
The Commissioner points out that the authorities should clarify the “vague” wording of the provision of the Constitutional Act concerning a body of a “strange name” which is responsible for the administration of citizens' right to information.
- This body should actually control whether the media are meeting their obligations. I am against such a concept. Everything that concerns the media falls, in my opinion, in the sphere of freedoms. The media freely gather and disseminate information and you cannot tell them what to do, says Sabic.
Asked if he expected a new Commissioner to be appointed after the parliamentary elections in January, Sabic says he is the wrong person to answer this question, adding that he will stay in the anti-corruption council, regardless of whether he stays there as a government official or as a lawyer.
Sabic also reminded us that last year, over 450 people sought help from the Commissioner's Bureau and that by the end of this year this number will have more than quadrupled, which shows how public trust in this institution has grown and that more and more citizens seek and get assistance from the Commissioner.
Sabic added that over 65 per cent of the cases have already been resolved and that none of The Commissioner's decisions were annulled by the Supreme Court of Serbia. As for the budget, Sabic says that the Commissioner's Bureau has spent 12 of 31 million Dinars from the allocated funds.
: Everything's a secret
Sabic also pointed to the laws that are yet to be adopted in order to round up regulations in the field of accessibility to information.
- We actually do not know what a state, an official or a business secret is and this is why the secrecy is often misused or at least there are attempts to misuse it. Sometimes, these attempts are made in order to obstruct the right to free access to information, says Sabic.
