![\"\"](\"http:\/\/carleton.ca\/fpa\/wp-content\/uploads\/kazmierski-400x292.jpg\" "\\"kazmierski\\"")
Most Canadians probably think of democracy in this country as something permanent and immutable. Not Vincent Kazmierski, an assistant law professor at Carleton. He believes it could easily wither without guaranteed access to information about government activities.<\/p>\n
Because this right is defined in legislation (the federal Access to Information Act and similar provincial acts), any government could limit the public\u2019s right to know about public affairs simply by changing the law, Kazmierski argues.<\/p>\n
He feels access to information is such a vital right that Canadian judges should interpret the wording of the Constitution to protect this right more forcefully. \u201cAccess to information is a key to our democratic process; it should be guaranteed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kazmierski points to a 2010 report that shows many federal government departments strongly resist requests to release information. He says that means that we also have to rethink our access process. \u201cAlthough we have this access to information legislation, it\u2019s clear that the legislation itself isn\u2019t enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
For this reason, Kazmierski is also starting to explore ways that Canadians can more strongly acknowledge and protect access to information. For instance, how do we ensure politicians and the public service recognize access to information principles and translate them into more democratic practices?<\/p>\n
He is also interested in the ways Canadians can use new information and communications technologies to access and work with government information. Canada enacted its first federal access to information legislation almost 30 years ago, and \u201cit\u2019s a very dated document,\u201d Kazmierski says. Updating the provisions should provide an opportunity to ensure they reflect 21st-century realities.<\/p>\n
Kazmierski says a number of his fellow faculty members are researching other elements of access to information, so there are many opportunities to build on each other\u2019s work. In fact, he is working with the Office of the Information Commissioner to organize a conference on access issues in September 2010.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Most Canadians probably think of democracy in this country as something permanent and immutable. Not Vincent Kazmierski, an assistant law professor at Carleton. He believes it could easily wither without guaranteed access to information about government activities. Because this right is defined in legislation (the federal Access to Information Act and similar provincial acts), any […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":71,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"yoast_head":"\n