Guaranteeing of access to information, priority for new government

“The public servants must support the investigative journalists by providing them with the necessary information as they help reduce corruption. The Prosecutor's Office should launch investigations after familiarizing themselves with the investigative materials pointing to violations of the legislation,” the chairwoman of the parliamentary commission for culture and mass media, Corina Fusu said at the yearly conference “Access to Information: Legislation, Reality, Prospects” held on September 28, Info-Prim Neo reports. According to her, the functionaries refuse to provide information for the journalists. As a result, they obtain irrelevant information or with delay so that it is no longer of interest. Referring to the priorities of the new government as regards the access to information and the freedom of expression, Fusu said that the government program of the Alliance for European Integration contains a chapter on the liberalization of the mass media market and guaranteeing of access to information and promised that, as head of the commission, she will help bring the legal framework of Moldova in compliance with the European standards not only on paper, but also in the daily life. The executive director of the Electronic Press Association Ion Bunduchi considers that the April 5 elections showed that the Moldovan people can remain uninformed in an information epoch. “The information has always been valuable. We must regard the information as a common property to which every citizen must have access. If we do not try to perceive the essence of these things, we could remain outside the global processes. History shows that the information helps the countries develop. Any power hides something, but there should be certain limits. It will be good for the country and for the governors if there is wide access to the information of public interest,” he said. Vasile Spinei, the president of Acces-Info Center did not agree with the idea that there are secrets that must remain secrets in public interests. According to him, all the secret must be revealed as hiding them can have serious repercussions. Spinei considers that the legislation on the access to information and the freedom of expression must be modified. “We have good laws that are not yet applied,” he said. Attending the conference, the secretary of the Central Election Commission (CEC) Iurie Ciocan said that he has never hindered the press or the people from obtaining information. He argued that since 2005 the Commission has published all its decisions on the official website, while since 2007 - all the information sent by the electoral contenders, including their property statements. “We have never closed the doors. All the meetings of the CEC are open,” Ciocan said. Petru Macovei, the president of the Independent Press Association, replied that the CEC could not professionally handle the applications over violation of the access to information and freedom of expression filed by politicians and did not manage to prevent the media wars during the electoral campaign. According to him, the electoral campaigns influenced the media outlets negatively. “During any electoral campaign the press has to choose between professional ethics and money. Many media organizations failed to respect the deontological norms.”