NO MORE SECRETS
Freedom of Information (FOI) Campaign

Do you know…
What you’re breathing? What's in your water? What's really in your food and drinks? How’s your tax money spent? Who’re getting the scholarships?

The Government, the companies making and testing products like your food, or providing you with water supply. Don't you think you should know what they’re doing?

Who are we?
Let us introduce ourselves. We are the National Coalition for a Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, formed in early 2005 following from a two-day conference on FOI legislation for Malaysia and the formulation of a statement of principles endorsed by over 32 organisations. We are a loose network of civil society organisations – ranging from human right’s groups to environmental organisations to women’s NGOs – coming together to campaign for a legislation that allows access to information, and pave the way for an end to secrecy laws in Malaysia.

What are we talking about?
We think the Government has too many secrets. We aren't allowed to know how they spend our money, yet our taxes and petrol prices go up to subsidise them. We aren't allowed to know why our water companies are being sold, yet our taps run dry and our water stinks. We aren't allowed to know about contracts, bridges, or hospitals, yet we're expected to pay for them, even as the roads are falling apart, as the bridges are not built and the hospitals are likely to make you sick rather than better.

Isn't it time we had access to some of these ‘secrets’?

So, we’re saying that
1. We would like to be told important details relating to our society. Government information should be public information. We want to have access to all information, unless there's a good reason to keep it from us. That's principle one, the principle of maximum disclosure.
2. We want to know when we want to know, not when the Government wants to tell us. Facts about water quality, minutes of meetings, criteria for appointing local councillors; these should always be made available. It's principle two, the principle of routine publication.
3. The Government (or any self-appointed censors) don't get to say what we get to know. Somebody who's not going to benefit from the failures or corruptions in Government should decide. This is principle three, the principle of setting up an independent, administrative oversight body.
4. Rather than hiding their mistakes, the Government should be open about their mistakes and learn from them because each mistake costs the public dearly. There should be a move towards making as few mistakes as possible. Principle four, the principle of open government.
5. Some things can be kept secret. This isn't about stopping the police from catching criminals, or betraying military secrets. But there should be good, tight reasons for having secrets. It should be about protecting us, not protecting corruption. Hence principle five, the principle of exceptions.
6. We shouldn't have to pay. This information is important for all of us to contribute to society. Costs should be kept low. We shouldn't have to spend three days filling in ten forms to find out what's in the air we breathe. See principle six, the principle of keeping costs low, and processes simple.
7. We should be able to see what the government is up to. When the local government is changing plans, we want to be there. When a new factory is being approved, we want to be there. When a hill is being destroyed to build more houses, we want to be there. Meetings, whether about education or advertising billboards, should be open because these are decisions that affect us. This leads us to principle seven, the principle of open meetings.
8. There is a need to ensure that the implementation of the FOI legislation will not be impeded by existing laws. Thus principle eight, the principle of reviewing other legislation.
9. If you expose corruption, you should be rewarded, not punished. Principle nine, the principle of protecting whistleblowers.
10. Periodically check to see if the FOI legislation is still working. What's good today might be not so good tomorrow. Think principle ten, the principle requiring the FOI law to be reviewed regularly.
These are 10 basic principles of FOI that should be practised to ensure a more open and accountable government.

Yes, but....

What about privacy, you ask?

This falls under the principle of exceptions as mentioned above. If it's about my body, my health, any personal information about me, sorry, but you won’t get near them, even if that information is in the hands of the Government.

Our country’s security?

Again this falls under the principle of exceptions. When unsure if something should be kept ‘secret’ by the government, use the 3-stage test. For example:
1. Is the information about our national security?
2. Does releasing the information harm national security?
3. Is there an overriding public interest for the information to be made available?
Even if the answer to the first two questions is YES, then the information can be withheld. However, an affirmative to the third question means we have a right to the information, even if it harms our national security in the short-term.


What can you do to help?

Hold a talk on No More Secrets. Call together some friends and have a teh-tarik session. Contact us, the FOI coalition, through the website given.
1. Sign the petition. Visit the Info Cafe to sign the petition. The website is given below.
2. Whether you are a lawyer, doctor, accountant, salesperson, clerk or home-maker, contact us. We need you and there are many things you can do to help us.
3. Work with people you know who are doing a good job in Government. Praise them. Then ask them to support the FOI campaign.
4. Talk to local government and get them to adopt some of the ten principles in their dealings.
5. Write letters to people you know who are doing a bad job, and ask them for information. Show up their answers (or lack of answers) on the Info Cafe website, or write to the newspapers and tell them.
6. Come up with your own ideas, and we'll try and help you make them real.

I want to know more...
That's what this is about! For more on the FOI campaign, pop into www.cijmalaysia.org/info_cafe for debates, articles, opinions and experiences.

You can contact us at

Centre for Independent Journalism
27-C, Jalan Sarikei
off Jalan Pahang
53000 Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia
(behind Tawakal Hospital)

Tel : +60.3.4023.0772
Fax : +60.3.4023.0769

Email: Cynthia Gabriel cynth@pd.jaring.my
Sonia Randhawa soniarandhawa1@yahoo.com.my