Category Archives: News

Today, on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, the four specialised mandates tasked with promoting and protecting freedom of expression at the UN, OAS, OSCE and African Commission launched their 18th annual statement, the Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression and Countering Violent Extremism. The Joint Declaration will be presented publicly tomorrow at the … Continue reading →

Today, the Centre for Law and Democracy and International Media Support are hosting a seminar on Promoting Journalists’ Safety: Building an Effective Safety Mechanism, as a side event at the main UNESCO World Press Freedom Day event in Helsinki. The purpose of the event is to host a debate on the Discussion Paper, Supporting Freedom … Continue reading →

Today, UNESCO and the Centre for Law and Democracy released a Discussion Paper, Supporting Freedom of Expression: A Practical Guide to Developing Specialised Safety Mechanisms, which provides direction and support to those who are thinking of putting in place national safety mechanisms. Such mechanisms are proving to be an indispensable means of protecting journalists and … Continue reading →

The Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD), with the support of International Media Support (IMS), has released an Analysis of Myanmar’s Broadcast Law, adopted in August 2015, to feed into the Myanmar Media Law Conference: Challenges to Myanmar’s Media Landscape, which will take place from 19-20 March. The Analysis notes that the Law goes a … Continue reading →

An open public consultation aimed at gathering views from key stakeholders on the establishment of a Special Mechanism for Media Freedom in the Arab World was launched today. The consultation is part of a regional initiative to improve the performance and the commitment of Arab States to media freedom. It responds to rising concerns in … Continue reading →

Today, the Report of the International Mission to Nepal for Promoting Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists was launched, outlining the findings of the Nepal International Media Partnership (NIMP), which visited Nepal from 19 to 23 April 2015. The primary goals of the Mission were to assess the media freedom situation in the country … Continue reading →

Last week, civil society representatives from across Myanmar, representing a range of diverse interests, met in Yangon to found the National Right to Information Working Group. The Working Group is the result of over a year of advocacy and awareness raising efforts by Pyi Gyi Khin (PGK), a Myanmar-based NGO, and the Centre for Law … Continue reading →

In November 2015, two years after the country committed to pass a right to information law, Malawi’s Ministry of Justice finally unveiled a draft Access to Information Bill. An Analysis of the Bill released today by the Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD) shows that, if passed, the Bill would be one of the stronger … Continue reading →

The 2015 International Partnership Mission to Indonesia (IPMI) has released its Observations and Recommendations, including a detailed list of suggested measures to protect freedom of expression in the country. The Observations and Recommendations focus on challenges faced by local and foreign journalists, legal and regulatory threats to freedom of expression, and Indonesia’s continuing climate of … Continue reading →

The Sri Lankan Cabinet has approved a draft Right to Information (RTI) Act which, if passed into law, would be among the strongest in the world. Although Sri Lanka is a relative latecomer in this area – being the only country in South Asia apart from Bhutan that has yet to adopt an RTI law … Continue reading →

The Myanmar Media Lawyers’ Network (MMLN) and the Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD) hosted a workshop on 29 November to discuss changes to the country’s broadcasting framework, and how they will impact freedom of expression in the country. The workshop, which was carried out with support from International Media Support (IMS), featured a robust … Continue reading →

On 24 November 2015, over 70 representatives from the Eastern Shan State Civil Society Network met in Tachileik to discuss the right to information (RTI) in Myanmar. The workshop was hosted by Pyi Gyi Khin, a Myanmar-based NGO working on this issue, along with the Centre for Law and Democracy, with the support of International … Continue reading →

Almost exactly 18 months ago, when CLD commented on the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) first ever Access-to-Information Policy, the title of our press release was “Practise what you preach”. This reflected the hypocrisy of UNEP advising others to adopt strong rules on the right to information (RTI) while putting in place a very substandard … Continue reading →

An international delegation of media and freedom of expression organisations met with the Indonesian government to discuss the state of media in the country. It highlighted concerns regarding journalist safety and an environment that poses significant threats to freedom of expression. At a meeting on Thursday, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Luhut … Continue reading →

Vietnam now appears to be moving forward with its draft law on access to information held by public authorities (the Law on Access to Information), which is expected to be adopted by the National Assembly in 2016. Discussions about such a law have been ongoing for some time, so it is heartening that the country … Continue reading →

Italy is one of the few countries in Europe which still does not have a dedicated law on access to information held by public authorities (right to information law). Member of Parliament Anna Ascani has now prepared a dedicated RTI law with a view to addressing this anomaly, but the draft has a long way … Continue reading →

One month ago, a coalition of 22 NGOs from across Canada signed a Joint Letter calling on the leaders of Canada’s political parties to make concrete commitments to reform Canada’s outdated access to information system. Today, we are pleased to have received promises from the NDP and Liberal parties to substantively improve the system if … Continue reading →

In August, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) published a draft Information Disclosure Policy for purposes of public consultation. Once finalised, the Policy will replace the GCF’s Interim Information Disclosure Practice, adopted in October 2013. Moves to adopt a longer-term policy in this area are welcome. However, a Submission supported by CLD and endorsed by a … Continue reading →

Join us for a Discussion on 28 September, International Right to Know Day, To Talk About How to Promote Transparent Government The right to access information held by public bodies, known as the right to information, is internationally recognised as a human right and protected under Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The right provides … Continue reading →

The undersigned organizations have issued a Joint Letter to the major political parties in Canada calling on them to make concrete commitments to reform Canada’s access to information system. A strong access to information system is vital to maintaining a healthy democracy. The public has the right to obtain the information it needs to participate … Continue reading →