Imagine President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono issuing a directive on the day the law on access to public information comes into full force on April 30, calling for a compliance in the name of greater government transparency and accountability. Imagine Yudhoyono telling his bureaucrats that although there are exemptions that allow them to withhold information, they should never invoke them unless it is absolutely necessary.
That is probably hard to imagine but not necessarily impossible. US President Barack Obama, on his first day in office in February 2009, issued such a directive about the implementation of the Freedom of Information Act, in a memo to the bureaucracy saying that his government would work “to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation and collaboration”.
But this is Indonesia. It would be expecting too much from our President and government to show the same de-mocratic spirit in welcoming the new law, which, with all its imperfections, is still a milestone in the journey of Indonesia toward democracy.
In fact, we see little celebration if at all with the passage of the new law.
Understandably, the bureaucracy would rather have the law buried because it is not ready even though they have had two years of preparation since the law was enacted by the House of Representatives in 2008. Sharing information with the public means they have to be more accountable and transparent in their work. So, mentally too, they are not ready.
But surprisingly, the law receives scant attention also from potential users and beneficiaries. In the US, the main users of the law come from the corporate world, lawyers, individuals, NGOs and the media, in that order.
These are the groups that should be toasting the new law.
The access to public information law in many respects is modeled on the Freedom of Information Act in the US.
Indonesia should be grateful that it joins a few other countries around the world that has such legislation, which through the promotion of transparency, will surely ensure better governance.
Under the law, all records and documents in government agencies or those agencies that receive state funding, must be made available to the public, either disseminated proactively (now made possible thanks to the Internet) or on requests. The law allows for nine types of exemption whereby the government can withhold information and usually focus on national security and privacy rights.
The two-year grace provided by the House of Representatives was implemented to allow the government to make the necessary preparations in implementing the law, including the mechanism by which members of the public can access and request information, and also most importantly, perhaps, change the mindset and culture prevailing in the bureaucracy of withholding information as a way of controlling the population.
Sadly, most government agencies have taken a laid back attitude toward the legislation. The Information Commission, an independent agency set up to oversee the implementation, has been established at the national level, but only three or four provinces have established their own local commissions. Only seven government agencies nationwide have seriously prepared for the implementation of the law, by appointing a public information officer to deal with public requests.
The government has not even developed regulations supplementary to the law, at least it had not by Thursday afternoon. On Friday, the law will be formally in place and legally, members of the public can prosecute the government or its agencies for failing to provide them with information, and the government cannot use the pretext that it has not implemented regulations as an excuse.
For all its faults, including our lack of attention and preparedness, the law on access to public information ushers in a new era for Indonesia’s march to democracy. We should rejoice the implementation of the law by making full use of it and test the government’s commitment to better governance and transparency.
