WHEREAS restrictions on access to information are one of the significant limitations on freedom of expression and the public's right to know
WHEREAS in Canada, the system of information control imposed by legislation continues to fail in the entire disclosure of aboriginal investigations, classification of information, and restriction of police investigations into matters of public interest
WHEREAS in El Salvador, there is increasing opacity in government offices when asked for public information, and the Institute for Access to Public Information (IAIP) has become an invisible entity, while initiatives such as the "Defense of Freedom of the Press in El Salvador" seek to strengthen oversight and transparency in the country
WHEREAS in the United States, journalists have had problems gaining access to President Joe Biden and his senior officials and have held fewer press conferences than his predecessors, and often leave without taking questions from journalists.
WHEREAS in Panama, there are severe difficulties in accessing information of public interest, several government agencies and institutions have refused to provide requested information and refuse to answer journalists' questionnaires, despite the transparency law
WHEREAS in Puerto Rico, a study revealed that compliance with the Law on Transparency and Expedited Procedures for Access to Public Information, in effect for three years now, has been deficient and inconsistent on the part of dozens of government agencies and municipalities
WHEREAS in Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, government transparency is nonexistent, and access to public information is restricted for citizens and journalists
WHEREAS President Luis Abinader of the Dominican Republic announced that he would apply administrative sanctions to more than 50 official institutions that are not complying with the delivery of public information to requesters
WHEREAS Principle 3 of the Declaration of Chapultepec establishes that "the authorities should be legally obligated to make available to citizens, in a timely and equitable manner, the information generated by the public sector."
THE IAPA MID-YEAR MEETING RESOLVES
To reject the restrictions on access to public information and news coverage suffered by journalists and media outlets in several countries of the Americas.
To urge governments to comply efficiently with the laws, apply corrective measures such as the one announced by the president of the Dominican Republic
Urge governments, in compliance with legislation and constitutional obligations, to hold public education campaigns to enable citizens to assume their right to request information from the public administration
Ask governments to enact stricter and more specific document classification measures to increase public administration transparency.
