 Govt transparency is key
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-04-25 08:07 The recent call by Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng to advance the work of open government information is a move toward a responsible, clean, and law-abiding system. Shanghai was one of the first Chinese cities to implement provisions for the release of government information back in 2004, four years before a national provision came into effect. Over the past few years, local government departments have disclosed a total of 417,000 pieces of information, through channels such as press conferences, government bulletins, interactive websites, archives and public libraries. This is indeed a huge progress from earlier years when government secrecy was taken for granted by both officials and the society as a whole, a legacy attributable much to the decades of bureaucracy and centuries of feudalism in the country. Transparency is essential in keeping a check on abuse of official power and creating a fair playing ground for individuals and businesses. It is vital for building a democratic society.
The renewed call is especially important for Shanghai, a city that bids to become a global financial and shipping hub, since open government information is an international practice, without which Shanghai's ambitions will be unachievable. A trailblazer in the open government information efforts, Shanghai is still on the threshold of a long and arduous journey. The 2008 Shanghai Open Government Information Report released recently admitted that there is still quite a gap to meet the huge individual, social and economic needs. Many government departments are still not used to voluntarily releasing information to the public. A lot of the government information that could be used by the public to facilitate the social and economic progress still languishes in government files or, simply does not exist. In 2008, only about 59 percent of the public requests for government information disclosure in Shanghai were granted permission amid a total of 9,388 petitions, not an impressive figure for a city of 20 million people. And about 60 percent of the 502 requests for information, which the government refused to disclose, were cited as "state secrets", a very vague notion that should be defined in detail. Local government agencies have also paid more attention in the superficial work of setting up websites and the amount of information released, rather than the quality of the information and its use to the public. That is probably why the new documents announced by the municipal government require its agencies to disclose more details regarding the specific use of government funds in various sectors. It is unrealistic to expect a government, which has a tradition of secrecy, to change overnight. Yet a transparent government will never come if we don't keep pushing, like Shanghai did this time. (China Daily 04/25/2009 page4) |
