Awareness of Law on Access to Official Documents at the Kosovo municipal level not satisfactory, says OSCE Mission

PRISTINA, 7 November 2007 - Kosovo's municipalities need to do more to raise peoples' awareness and the capacity of civil servants about the Law on Access to Official Documents, says an OSCE Mission report issued today.

The paper is based on an extensive survey carried out by the Mission's Municipal Teams, and includes an assessment analyses of the level of implementation of the law and subsidiary legislation at the local level. It notes that residents lack information on their rights to access official documents under the law, and that more training and capacity-building is required for municipal officials.

"Information held by public institutions is considered public information. It is therefore an obligation of institutions to respond to requests for such information," said Markku Laamanen, Deputy Head of the OSCE Mission.

Obstacles identified in the report include the absence of a unified procedure to access official documents and lack of harmonised procedures for classification of documents. Furthermore, many municipalities still have to establish a register of official documents and an archive office. Non-issuance of annual reports and a lack of written data on the submitted requests should be addressed.

On the other side, a marginal number or even lack of requests submitted by the public point to lack of knowledge among the wider public and the tradition of non-disclosure of public information as result of rather restrictive approach to transparency in the past.

"One of the core tenants of a democratic system is to ensure people are informed about laws and official acts, as well as the rights they enjoy under the law; this leads to a more transparent and better functioning government," said Henry McGowen, Director of the Mission's Department of Human Rights, Decentralization and Communities.

The report also calls for closer co-operation between the central and local levels when it comes to implementing the Law on Access to Official Documents, as a considerable number of municipalities lack knowledge about subsidiary legislation in the field. An improved flow of information and clear guidance from the central level can only contribute to successful implementation of the law.

The OSCE Mission is committed to supporting municipal administrations to comply with relevant laws and standards, as part of its institution building and strengthening efforts in Kosovo.

Copies of the report are available on the OSCE website at: www.osce.org/kosovo