Right to Information Act: Expectations of the Marginalized

One of the major responsibilities of the Information Commission is stated in the Right to Information Act, 2009: to identify obstacles to the preservation and implementation of citizens' right to information and recommend appropriate remedies to the Government (5.e of Article 13 (Powers and Functions of the Information Commission).

The Right to Information Act, 2009 has passed a decade and a half in the democratic state of Bangladesh. Democratic governance never condones tyranny. Because secrecy is considered a trick to bypass or trick people. Democracy is always dedicated to the welfare of the people - the welfare of the people is the first consideration behind any legislation, even the Right to Information Act. Of course, the Right to Information Act is one of the laws that are making a strong contribution to the benefit of the people in Bangladesh. Due to its practical importance, the civil term of this Act is 'People's Act'. Addressing the people as the owners of the country and respecting their fundamental rights such as freedom of thought, conscience and speech, its preamble emphasizes three points about the purpose of the Act: namely-1. Transparency and accountability will increase, 2. Corruption will decrease, and 3. Good governance will be ensured. After the passage of the Right to Information Act, how much has changed in the three cases described in the past decade and a half, the concerned circles must have a watchful eye on it. Because, the future of any law depends on the evaluation of how much it is benefiting the people of the country.

All people want to live in society with rights. Although there is a lot of talk about getting and not getting rights, the issue of exercising people's rights, even on paper, is always mentioned on some occasion or the other. Although the right attribute is specialized with various adjectives like natural, automatic etc., the final word remains that someone gives and someone gets the rights. This giving and receiving is both political and legal; Because this give-and-take or reciprocity cannot be achieved without the introduction of specific rules at the initiative of some. Those who initiate and implement the regulations are the board of directors or the government. And all the people living in the specific land under the control of the government including the manpower are its beneficiaries or target population. The nature of the relationship between the government and the people can be understood from the nature of the rights-based development of a country and the true face of democratic values.

The majority of practitioners of the Right to Information Act in Bangladesh include people who are said to be marginal in the country and members of the population groups who are marginalized by the discriminatory social system in various ways. And, in most cases, there are some non-governmental service organizations or NGOs behind the practitioners. And, the vast majority of information requests revolve around some local issues, including the government's social safety net. This has opened the door to the exercise of the rights of marginalized people and is moving towards fulfilling the larger goals of the law, though at a limited level. However, if the participation of journalists, civil society representatives, well-educated people, philanthropists, various types of professionals, national and local individuals and organizations working with public interest or group interest is strengthened, the goal of the law would be easier to achieve.

Service organizations operating in the country have adopted the Right to Information Act as a powerful legal tool to fight for a dignified life by realizing the rights and demands of the marginalized. From the beginning, these organizations have encouraged marginalized people with diverse identities to seek their rights from local government agencies. These organizations mobilize marginalized people in different parts of the country and educate them about their rights by giving them thorough explanation of the law. Some organizations have issued publications with short but concise explanations to make the law easier to understand.

People from marginalized communities are working for their advancement using Right to Information Act. However, several obstacles accompany them. With due respect to the law, we have some proposals in this regard which may be considered by the honorable commission. The propositions are presented in the boldness that law has the presence of the term rights – rights always speak for the neglected, deprived and marginalized.

n Proper arrangement should be ensured so that common people can get information at home. In some cases, the responsible officers ask the information seeker to come to the office to talk about the information collection or application, so that a kind of fear works in the mind of the marginal information seeker. It is best to reply to the letter by letter.

n  After receiving the complaint, in the first stage, the Information Commission can ask the designated officer to inform the reasons for not providing information or direct him to providing information. If the convicted designated officer fails to do so, then the Commission should ask the complainant and the defendant (information seeker and designated officer) to present before the hearing in the Information Commission. As the Commissioner has 75 days allotted, the process can be completed within this period. Marginalized information seekers are not so interested to come to Dhaka to participate in the hearing.

n  Complaint disposal details should be sent in writing to the information seeker and the informant. This document can play a great role in the mental development and understanding the citizenship of the people.

n The issue of information seeking and receiving should be brought seriously through publicity. In particular, those who have been able to discover the mechanisms of change by using the information received, other stakeholders can also make their own change efforts.

n  The Information Commission must supervise that the information sought is complete and correct. It would be more reasonable not to treat misinformation and not giving information on the same level.

n The training program of the Information Commission has evoked quite a response at various levels including district and upazila. Now the words 'I do not know about  this law', which have been heard many times at the beginning of the introduction of this law, are not heard. However, this training program should not be not limited to government offices and can be extended to local and national service organizations, social, cultural and religious organizations, financial and political institutions, etc. Only then will this people-friendly law become universal. The people of marginalized communities will be benefited from this.

n  Whenever the Commission so desires, the information seeker may waive the amount (Tk. 2 per page) required to be deposited in the bank by treasury challan towards the cost of collection of information. This process of submission is very troublesome for a marginal information seeker. We propose for waiving prices for at least 25 pages, if not entirely.

n It should be ensured that no information is given orally and the information seeker is not disturbed by the designated officers over the phone. Some officials ask  the information seekers- why do you seek it, who inspired you for the information, who wrote it, what to do with the information, etc.

n RTI applications are mostly sent by the registry post. If the number of application letters is high, the officials of the postal department raise various irrelevant questions. Many insist on putting the phone number on the envelope, which we know is not a necessary part of the address. The matter needs to be considered by the Information Commission.

n The name of the designated officer does not seem to be a very important factor in seeking information. It is very difficult for people living in remote areas to apply by knowing the name of the officer. The address of the office where the information is/will be sought should be deemed sufficient in this case. The people of that office must know which official will provide the information.

n If one does not follow/use the prescribed form in the application for information, but the contents of the application can be understood by reading the application and the information is to be given, then appropriate action should be taken.

A real picture of the inclusion of marginalized people in the RTI Act and the attitude of the responsible officials towards it is found in the writings of former Chief Information Commissioner Mortuza Ahmad. He termed the Right to Information Act as 'universal', 'inclusive' and 'a stepping stone to the fulfillment of all other basic human rights', saying, "The practice of corruption is at the heart of it, where he tries his hardest to hide or distort information, creating an atmosphere of dread of being caught. Even among so-called honest officials, there is a strong desire to display traditional power, a keen effort to conceal information. ..Out of our vast population those who are backward, disadvantaged, crippled/disabled, handicapped, sick, widows, old, extreme poverty-stricken, floating, vulnerable, children and women, minorities, illiterate, are ignorant of fundamental rights,  there is no ability, skill and preparation to understand and apply the work being conducted. .. On this occasion, many authorities also show reluctance to provide and disclose information instead of showing the desired level of sensitivity towards these communities.”

The Information Commission may consider these proposals after giving due importance to the content of the statement by the CIC (there is provision in the RTI Act). We want the Right to Information Act to become a truly universal law, where the rights of the marginalized need to be taken into account. We are committed in achieving the development goals at the national and international levels. If they are not properly implemented, the most valuable things like transparency and accountability, prevention of corruption and establishment of good governance will remain in question. Here's another thing to say: Marginality cannot be eliminated by complex mathematical calculations, it requires something real where the RTI Act can play an effective role.


Babul Chandra Sutradhar is a human
rights activist and a researcher.