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OSCE Mission acknowledges adoption of law on free access to information
BELGRADE 15 November 2004
BELGRADE, 15 November 2004 - The OSCE Mission to Serbia and Montenegro, the Council of Europe Office in Belgrade and the Delegation of the European Commission to Serbia and Montenegro acknowledge the adoption of the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance by the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia.
The adoption of this Law paves the way for an effective and transparent process of releasing public information, in line with the expectations of the society as a whole.
The OSCE Mission, the Council of Europe and the EU are aware that the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance generally meets internationally accepted standards and principles. However, they encourage the Serbian Government to further improve the adopted Law, in conformity with the principles set out in Recommendation (2002) 2 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on access to official documents.
Some of those principles, which were presented in the parliamentary debate, were unfortunately not upheld, such as the right to appeal a decision of high-ranking public authorities not to release information or the principle that all information held by the authorities is to be available, with the exception of exemptions prescribed by law.
The OSCE Mission, the Council of Europe and the EU are also hopeful that the right to free access to information will be incorporated into section on fundamental human rights of the new Serbian Constitution. Such a promotion of the right to free access to information will necessarily foster the implementation of democratic principles and the rule of law.
Finally, the OSCE Mission, the Council of Europe and the EU express their readiness to further co-operate with the Serbian authorities on the implementation of this Law, with regard to both the setting-up of the office of the Commissioner for Information and education of civil servants and citizens.
The adoption of this Law paves the way for an effective and transparent process of releasing public information, in line with the expectations of the society as a whole.
The OSCE Mission, the Council of Europe and the EU are aware that the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance generally meets internationally accepted standards and principles. However, they encourage the Serbian Government to further improve the adopted Law, in conformity with the principles set out in Recommendation (2002) 2 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on access to official documents.
Some of those principles, which were presented in the parliamentary debate, were unfortunately not upheld, such as the right to appeal a decision of high-ranking public authorities not to release information or the principle that all information held by the authorities is to be available, with the exception of exemptions prescribed by law.
The OSCE Mission, the Council of Europe and the EU are also hopeful that the right to free access to information will be incorporated into section on fundamental human rights of the new Serbian Constitution. Such a promotion of the right to free access to information will necessarily foster the implementation of democratic principles and the rule of law.
Finally, the OSCE Mission, the Council of Europe and the EU express their readiness to further co-operate with the Serbian authorities on the implementation of this Law, with regard to both the setting-up of the office of the Commissioner for Information and education of civil servants and citizens.