Interventions
In July 2016 Warsaw hosted a NATO summit. As there were multiple estimates regarding the cost of organising the event, we decided to send a request for public information to its main organiser, the Ministry of National Defence. We asked for disclosure of the report that the Ministry submitted to the prime minister after the summit ended, but they refused to do so hiding behind data confidentiality. Why not, however, disclose at least those parts that are not confidential? As we firmly believe that the public has a right to know the extent of the financial burden put on taxpayers, we decided to appeal against the ministry’s decision to the administrative court. The hearing will take place on the 6th of October.
At the local level
Our readers were recently moved by the issue of office equipment at the Social Welfare Centre in Przemyśl. While watching a documentary about the centre that included among others an interview with its director, they noticed an “expensive” computer of the kind used for playing games rather than office work, and a gaming chair. One of them decided to request a breakdown of costs from the centre but received no answer, which is why we decided to step in and send the request ourselves. After all, even if the accusation turns out to be unfounded, the public should have access to information on office supplies expenditures, as it enables citizens to evaluate public spending. We turned out to have better luck than our reader and received all requested information from the centre’s director. What is worrying though is that only NGOs’ requests seem to be treated seriously. We would like every citizen to be able to benefit from the right to information.
Daily life at Watchdog Poland
As the new legislation on common courts in Poland significantly hampers judicial independence (see our July summary article), we decided to find out how the courts’ functioning has changed since the new law entered into force. We organised a meeting with all those interested in monitoring the work of courts and together we prepared a list of questions that we intend to ask their presidents. You can find out more about it here.
In August, our team welcomed our new colleague- lawyer Adam Kuczyński who will be working in our legal advisory service providing free legal assistance in the right to information.
On the International Right to Know Day on the 28th of September, we will have the pleasure to “make a toast for transparency” during the third edition of this annual event. This year the event will feature a premiere screening of the first Polish TV spot promoting the right to information. Have a look at the photo from the film set below!
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