The news
In August, the State Council of the People's Republic of China announced a new interpretation of laws, specifying situations in which a government department may be sued under the Regulations on Open Government Information (OGI) on the mainland. These situations include scenarios such as when a government department fails to respond to a request for information, fails to respond on time, or releases information that harms an individual's privacy.
Background on OGI
OGI was adopted by the State Council on January 1, 2007, and became effective on May 1, 2008. The law requires government departments to publicise information they have created or obtained in the course of carrying out their duties. They must make that information public upon request. OGI allows local governments to formulate their own rules and policies on information disclosure.
According to Professor Fu Hualing, former head of the Department of Law at the University of Hong Kong, OGI is the result of an ongoing initiative, which began in the 1990s, to ensure greater transparency in government.
Problems with OGI
'Since OGI was implemented, it has been criticised for being too vague,' says Fu, who has published an article called 'Can OGI take off in China?' on the website of the non-government organisation, Human Rights in China.