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People not only have access to information, but are even deprived of reaching to administrations: Bashardost
By Farhad Naibkhel-KABUL: A one-day conference assessed Sunday the culture of access to information.
“Efforts were made in the past 10 months to foster the culture of access to information among different organs,” said Sayed Ikram Afzali, head of the oversight commission of access to information, a non-government body that held the conference.
He stated that the government did not support them despite their demands.
Deputy culture minister Sayeda Muzhgan Mustafawi said that access to information faced challenges, particularly in the rural areas where the warlords have the most influence over the media.
“Some organs are not ready to share normal information with people and media,” she added.
The government had earlier approved the law of access to information, but access to information is still a matter of concern, according to the senior official of the culture ministry which is responsible to monitor the media policies.
“The government provides access to normal information like military and intelligence information,” Mustafawi insisted.
She emphasized that the culture ministry was committed to enhance culture of access to information and help the process for further promotion.
Critic member of parliament Ramazan Bashardost said that people were deprived of access to information, and face different barrier.
He said that people come from long distances to meet parliament members and governmental officials to share their problems, but they can’t meet them despite of waiting days behind parliament and administration doors.
He claimed that the law on access to information has some defects, which need to be revised.
It is pertained to mention that the law of access to information has been approved by the government around two years ago, but still not implemented properly as people expected. Still media outlets faced to different barriers in access to information throughout the country.
