Τι σημαίνει "Πρόσβαση σε Πληροφορίες";
In a democracy it is essential that people can access a wide range of information in order to participate in a real and effective way in the matters that affect them. The principle behind the right of access to information is that public bodies are – or should be – acting as "servants of the people". That's why we all have the right of access to the information held by public bodies on our behalf
The first access to information law was the Swedish law of 1766. However, it was after the United States passed the Freedom of Information Act in 1966 that the idea of access to information spread worldwide. There was a steady growth in laws during the 1970s and 1980s but the major expansion of recognition in law of the right to know came after 1989 when civil society groups in central and eastern Europe started claiming this right. The governments of those new democracies adopted access to information laws throughout the 1990s. In the last decade, many Latin American, African and Asian countries have incorporated access to information laws into their legal regimes. Today, as a result of campaigns to promote the right of access to information, 84 countries have access to information laws. In addition, the right of access to information has been recognised as a fundamental human right by the highest international human rights courts.
This right of access to information places two obligations on governments. First, the obligation to publish and disseminate to the public key information. Second, the obligation to receive from the public requests for information and to respond. In other words, access to information is a fundamental human right with two parts:
Proactive:the positive obligation of public bodies to provide, to publish, and to disseminate information about their main activities, including core classes of information such as budgets, policies, and plans. In this way the public can know what they are doing, can participate in public matters and keep public authorities accountable.
Reactive: the right of all persons to ask public officials for information about what they are doing and any documents they hold and the right to receive an answer with access granted either by viewing original documents or provision of copies. Due to legitimate exceptions (see: Are there any limitations to the right to know?), they may not always give you information but they always have to answer your request and you still have the right to appeal. Because it’s your right to know!
