The Act provides members of the public with a general right of access to official government documents held by public authorities which would have otherwise been inaccessible. The Act was made applicable to the following ministries and agencies (public authorities): The Ministry of Finance and Planning, Ministry of Local Government, Office of Cabinet, Office of the Prime Minister, Jamaica Information Service, National Works Agency, and The Planning Institute of Jamaica. In addition, The Act also “reinforces and gives further effect to certain fundamental principles underlying the system of constitutional democracy…” (The Access to Information Act 2002, Part 1: Preliminary, no.2). These principles are vital to an improved and more transparent government, greater accountability of the government to its people, increased public awareness and participation in the national decision-making process, and knowledge of functions of the government.
In general, this law meets the incipient international norms with a sturdy configuration and provisions to promote openness. This promotion of openness represents a deviation from an age-old culture of secrecy encompassing the government and its daily activities. The Access to Information Act 2002, is therefore vital to Jamaica’s democracy, because a government’s strength is determined by how much the people feel apart of it, hence the availability of information is a movement towards strengthening the government.
Benjamin Disraeli once said that the person who has the most access to information will have the greatest success in life. There is truth in this statement as The Access to Information Act 2002 was implemented with the objective of improving the Jamaican communities and society at large and this is definitely a step taken on the path to a successful government. Many communities are therefore able to profit from this enactment.
Access to public documents can assist members of a community or the general community in exercising their other basic human rights, such as their right to suitable health care, housing, education and a clean and healthy environment. The Act is a means of fostering transparency thus preventing corruption and backdoor deals. In Jamaica’s quest to combat corruption The Act ensures that public officials are held accountable for acts considered to be criminal; by doing so it guarantees that all persons enjoy equal access to justice.
Furthermore, this piece of legislation includes the training of civil servants in the law and best practices. Therefore community members should have access to the best service from the police force in terms of protection and assistance. Additionally they should also have ‘Grade A’ treatment by nurses and doctors, thus resulting in the highest quality in health care and children should also benefit in terms of their education by having access to well-qualified teachers.
More recent examples which reflect how this legislation can be used to improve the community are its associations with the Ministry of Information and the recent concerns linked to the Utilities Service and consumer advocates respectively. In the recent issue of the outrageously high electricity bills, due to the increase in oil prices, being distributed by The Jamaica Public Service Company (JPSCo), The Access to Information Act provided customers with vital information as how to properly appeal to the Office of Utility Regulations (OUR). With the global spiralling food prices, The Act played a fundamental part in allowing the citizens to be aware of the recent drop in the cost of food and the supermarkets and food outlets that were overcharging consumers. These are just a few of the many examples of how the Access to Information Act 2002 can be used to improve a community.
Many of the efforts in Jamaica to promote freedom of information serve as a model for other jurisdictions in other Caribbean countries. It is therefore obvious that the Jamaican Government and its public authorities have made great progress in the implementation of the Act. As a democratic country, the government understands the importance of free flow of information so that the citizens can participate more fully in public matters such as influencing the decision-making process in matters that will aid in nation-building. Clearly, the government is adhering to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 19, which states that everyone has the right ….. to seek, receive and impart information and ideas…..” Our country has recognized the role that the access to information can play in safeguarding civil-political and socio-economic rights, improving communities and in rebuilding trust between a government and its citizens.
Bibliography
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Access to Information Unit, Jamaica Archives and Records Department. (2003). The Access to Information Act 2002, Jamaica. Jamaica. Retrieved December 23, 2008 from .jis.gov.jm/special_sections/ATI.ATIACT.pdf
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Access to Information Unit, Jamaica Archives and Records Department. (2003). Access to Information. Jamaica. Retrieved December 23, 2003 from
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Access to Information Act, 2002, Director’s Report on the Commencement and Implementation of The Access to Information Act, 2002 Reporting Period (January 5-March 31, 2004. Retrieved January 24, 2009 from http://www.ati.gov.jm/directorsfirstquarterlyreport.pdf.
- Encarta Dictionaries, (2007).
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The Carter Center, (March 2006). Observations of the Access to Information Act 2002 in Jamaica. Retrieved December 23, 2008 from http://www.humanrightsinitiative.org/programs/ai/rti/international/laws_papers/jamaica/carter_centre_ati_rev_sub_mar06_jamaica.pdf