Was anyone from the bodies in power punished according to the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance? (December 2006)
Answer:
The Commissioner has information that the Municipal Magistrate in Sombor has in October of 2006 declared an official from the Public Veterinary Station responsible for violation from Article 46 paragraph 1, point 6 of the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance, due to lack of action regarding the application of the person requesting information. Infringement procedure has been lodged based on the request of the person requesting information, as injured party, not based on the order of state body in charge of supervising the implementation of the Law, that is, Ministry of Culture.
The Commissioner does not have information that according to the request of the Ministry in charge, any of the public bodies in power have been punished because of the infringement of the right to access information of public Importance, and over 760 cases have been delivered to the Ministry with the infringement elements, in order to start the infringement procedure.
According to the information received in mid-December 2006 from the Ministry of Culture, 15 infringement proceedings were initiated and 50 requests were processed for the start of infringement proceedings. (December 2006)
In late February 2007, the Ministry of Culture forwarded to the Commissioner first court orders passed by magistrates establishing the guilt of authorized local authority officials in infringement proceedings (3 orders), pursuant to petitions made by that Ministry; in these infringement cases, two perpetrators were fined and one was cited a formal warning. (March 2007)
