PCIJ WebAlert #12.2008

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W H A T ' S N E W @ www.pcij.org
1.April.2008


---------------[ i Report Feature )------

PUBLIC EYE

Investigating ODA
Gov't curbs access to information amid Senate scrutiny of projects
by Karol Ilagan

IN 1776 Holiday-Art-Books Dec-07 , Sweden enacted its freedom of
information law, the first country in the world to do so. While it has
been challenged time and again, the courts have invariably ruled in
favor of disclosure.

In the Philippines, while the public's right to information is firmly
enshrined in the 1987 Constitution, access to public records largely
remains limited, and many journalists under constant pressure of
deadlines have had to resort to various ways to acquire documents
other than what official sources could share.

For about six months, the Philippine Center for Investigative
Journalism (PCIJ) sought to uncover and scrutinize documents on
projects funded with official development assistance (ODA). Our
experience highlights the government's snail-paced progress toward
transparency, and full compliance with the Constitution's provision on
access to information.

The three-part series written for the PCIJ by Roel Landingin, senior
correspondent of The Financial Times of London, reflects the
reluctance by many government agencies to allow public access to
documents that involve use of taxpayers' money. The report published
in February 2008 established that 7 in 10 ODA projects reviewed have
failed to deliver their touted promise of economic benefits.

To support Landingin's report, the PCIJ filed 23 written requests for
documents with various government agencies. Only 15 were granted, for
a 65 percent response rate, even as many of the agencies failed to
provide all the data that PCIJ had asked for. The agencies who turned
down the requests similarly invoked either the so-called confidential
nature of the documents requested, or the seemingly catch-all excuse
called "executive privilege."

This special report on access to information on ODA projects tells of
the various ways by which government agencies heed -- or altogether
ignore -- legitimate requests for public documents, despite persistent
avowals of official commitment to transparency and accountability in
the public service.

Read on at http://pcij.org
Post your comments at http://pcij.org/blog/?p=2281


---------------[ The Daily PCIJ )------

Calatagan pot inscription no longer a mystery
by Karol Ilagan

THE inscription on the Calatagan pot -- the country's oldest cultural
artifact with pre-colonial writing -- is no longer shrouded in mystery.

University of the Philippines literature professor Dr. Ramon
Guillermo's latest attempt at decoding the said script is by far the
most definitive after many scholars, including National Artist
Guillermo Tolentino and French linguist Jean-Paul Potet, made
unsuccessful trials.

Read on and post your comments at http://pcij.org/blog/?p=2277