Public institutions addressed the legal framework of access to information in several legal initiatives in 2022. Most recently in November, the State Chancellery approved an Instruction regarding the depersonalization of administrative documents in the State Register of Local Documents. The document is intended to help civil servants understand how and when to remove personal data from official documents. It comes as a solution for the problem of civil servants removing data excessively in public documents, which occurred based on extensive interpretation of personal data to detriment of the principle of transparency.
In the beginning of the year, the Contravention Code was supplemented1 with sanctions if a public authority or institution refuses to receive, register or examine or ignore a request for access to information on the grounds that it was submitted in electronic form. This is important because previously there were cases when public institutions ignored electronic requests for access to information even though they would have been legally obliged to execute them.
Another positive development regarded the access to data from public registers (on population, business, real estate etc.). As per the amendments, information is to be released free of charge to journalists. In practice, however, the situation has not improved yet.
New draft law brings hope to CSOs for better access to information…
In the second half of the year, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) initiated the development of a new draft law on access to information, after the Government had initially approved another draft law with amendments to the Law on access to information. Media and CSOs are pinning their hopes on the new draft law, which they consider will lead to more favourable framework for access to information aligned to international standards.
… but CSOs remain concerned about the practice
According to the Index of Access to Information: measuring the transparency of public institutions in the Republic of Moldova 2022, published in December by Freedom House Moldova, the practice is still a cause for concern:
- Deficiencies originate from the legislative framework, but the main problem area is public authorities’ practice. Compared to 2021, the access to information index increased by 1 point from 46 to 47 in 2022 (out of 100).
- Proactive transparency: the main identified problem is the limited availability of data published by public institutions related to financial, staff-related and organisational aspects. This area decreased by 2 points from 12 to 11 (out of a maximum of 30).
- Access to information request: while this area somewhat improved (by 2 points from 12 to 14, out of a maximum of 30), the practice of prioritising the protection of personal data and the confidentiality of information over the public interest in transparency remains an issue.
- 1Contravention Code, article 3137 Excess of power in the case of documents in electronic format