The Center for Democratic Transition (CDT) called on the Agency for the Protection of Personal Data and Free Access to Information (AZLP) to urgently respond to "the silence of the administration that hinders our right and the right of the public to get access to information of public importance".
That NGO announced that for 40 days they have not been able to receive information and relevant documents from the Ministry of Culture and Media about the process of making a decision on the request for consent to the Municipality of Berane for the erection of a memorial to the former Metropolitan of the Montenegrin littoral Serbian Orthodox Church, Amfilohi.
"The Ministry of Culture and Media did not respond to our request for free access to information submitted on September 15 within the legal deadline of 20 days. This is precisely why CDT filed a complaint with AZLP on October 8. However, AZLP has not provided us with a solution to date, although the law prescribes that the AZLP is obliged to make a decision on a complaint and deliver it to the complainant within 15 days from the day the complaint was submitted".
They say that, specifically, they asked the Ministry for authentic copies of: the original decision on the request for consent from August 21, which was annulled; requests and additions to the requests of the Municipality of Berana for the erection of memorials; copies of the minutes from the sessions and any individual statements of the members of the Commission for Monuments of the Ministry of Culture and Media, which considered the request; as well as acts on the formation of that commission and the appointment of its members.
The CDT says that this kind of behavior by institutions is a gross violation of the Law on Free Access to Information and that it undermines citizens' trust in the work of the administration. "Although we have repeatedly appealed to the Ministry to respect the deadlines established by law, they persistently ignore our requests, thereby further confirming the practice of non-transparency and obstructing the right to access information."
They called on the Agency to decide on their appeal without delay because, as they say, delaying the resolution of such an important issue sends a clear message that the citizens' right to information is not the focus of the institutions.
They said that CDT, "if this behavior continues", will use all legal means, including the possibility of initiating a dispute before the Administrative Court.
"Transparency is not only an obligation to the laws, but also to the citizens who finance the work of these institutions and who have the right to true and timely information," said the NGO.
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