Freedom of information to the population is a right that is enshrined in international instruments such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and is believed to be the cornerstone of every democracy. Freedom of citizens to seek and access information has wide merits and except for cases where withholding information from the public is in the larger interest of the nation, any curtailment of this freedom would result in a demagogic state of affairs.
At the outset, exceptions to this fundamental right must be enlisted. International charter of human rights defines these unequivocally as instances where there is a threat to national security, law and order, rights and reputations of others and public health and morals. In the event of war, classified information, which would endanger national security if access were available to egregious elements, must be curtailed from reaching the laity. This is necessitated, as it is impossible to delineate anti national elements from amongst the populace. Secrecy in matters is also prudent when unsubstantiated information is likely to cause panic and pellmell in the nation.
Barring the above instances, free flow of information is essential for the citizens to participate actively in the governance of the society. It is impossible for the government or legislation to guarantee the security of each and every individual and in instances of possible terrorist attacks, the denizens cannot be vigilant unless they are disclosed information about possible terror attacks that the intelligence agencies have intercepted. A complete disclosure of facts, endangered locations and modus operendi of the terrorists is crucial if such events are to be thwarted.
Effective governance is a misnomer in absence of accountability of public officials who work on behalf of the citizens. Corruption and red tapism is rampant in countries where the populace does not have the right to demand information about how the money they pay as taxes is being utilized. Stastics prove that countries where the right to information act has been enacted, have been successful inr educing corruption and mismanagement. Stastics also reveal that 9 out of 10 countries that rated high on government transparency, had an effective legislation whereby people had the freedom to peruse government documents. In India, the right to information act has been instrumental in implicating many high ranking public officials who had plundered the tax payers money.
Transparency in government working is also essential for citizens to make a more informed decision about their elected representatives. In absence of such information, the decision would be based purely on rhetoric and in certain cases vote buying. In less developed countries politicians often rig up data and false facts during election time to convince the electorates about the impact they have made. An uninformed citizenry would have no way of adjudging the veracity of these claims and would be hoodwinked into voting for those who have the political and mercenary muscle to influence opinion. Even the government officials are impelled to work for the good of the people under the watchful eye of an informed citizenry.
In closing, when the larger interest of the nation is taken into consideration there is no justification of information being suppressed from the public. Free access to government policies and decisions is imperative for effective governance, enhanced transparency and informed decision making which are pillars that strengthen a nation. With the preclusion of matters where disclosure of information is likely to impede the functioning of the nation, there is no cogent argument for such censorship.
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