UNESCO Director-General, Audrey Azoulay, in her message on this occasion, urged all countries to adopt legislation in the field of access to information, and to strengthen the implementation of such guarantees where these already exist such as the case of Jordan. She emphasized that “Governments must ensure safe and transparent data collection, strengthen record keeping and enable accurate analysis. And they must align these efforts with international privacy standards”.
Toby Mendel, Executive Director of Centre for Law and Democracy, spoke in the roundtable discussion and gave an overview of the international legal standards that guarantee the protection of access to information. He pointed out the key function that judiciary can play in safeguarding against the erosion of the right and ensuring that States and other relevant actors meet their obligations to respect, protect, promote, and fulfil the right to freedom of expression.
Khalid Khlaifat, legal advisor specialized in defending journalists and freedom of expression, explained to the audience the many challenges that the effective implementation of the ATI Law faces. These include no clear mechanism for the classification of information, a wide range of excluded documents, lack of or weak human resources and the impunity that accompanies the non-publication of information.
Rawan Al Damen, General Director of Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ), said that access to information is crucial to the work of journalists, especially those working on investigative stories. She added that the right to access to information has never been so important. She criticized the failure to make timely, updated information available and reports of restrictions on accessing the internet, blocked social media platforms and other communication services.
Source: Jordan News Agency