Rising Kashmir: Srinagar: Wednesday, July 26, 2017.
In order to
flourish Right To Information (RTI) Act in J&K, speakers Tuesday in an
awareness workshop opined that “media engagement” is a must to bridge the
decade's old communication gap between public and Government.
“Of course
RTI Act is challenging in JK. The motive of the law which was enacted in March
2009 was to meet the public anger and grievances and give that a way out,”
Chairperson Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) Wajahat Habibullah
said.
The awareness
workshop titled using RTI as a tool for better reporting was organised by
J&K RTI movement in association with CHRI, an independent and non-profit
international non-government organisation at IMPA Srinagar.
Wajahat who
is the former Chief Information Commissioner asked the press to realise their
responsibilities and use the instrument (RTI) for the benefit of the public.
“Media
engagement is a must to flourish Right to Information Act and make democracy
effective in the state,” he said.
He said the
law is a major outlet for providing solutions to the concerns and grievances of
the people.
“The
communication between government and public has remained weak since decades.
However, it was restored to a large extent but it is still not strong,” said
Wajahat.
In the
workshop, he said people are using the law but it hasn’t yet made dramatic
advancements in the state.
“RTI provides
an outlet and a means to reach to the government and till now the biggest
achievement is that the law has been implemented not its outcomes,” he said.
Saying that
the democratic structure hasn’t been able to function properly he said that
there are still loop holes in the system itself adding, “The mistrusted feeling
can be addressed by the RTI.”
He also said
the law is challenging in the state which could in the long run help to meet
the communication gaps between government and public.
On the
occasion director Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, Sanjoy Hazarika said
that there is a dire need to unearth the realities and highlight the issues
faced by RTI activists.
“Media also
has a role to reflect the voice of voiceless pertaining to RTI. It can be used
to highlight these scandals. These issues matter a lot to the public,” said the
director who is also a human rights activist recognised internationally for
designing and developing innovative strategies for inclusive health.
He said most
of the RTI application filed in the state in the past were about the land
acquisitions and property related disputes.
Sanjoy who is
also journalist and a film maker said there are a number of active land mafias
in Kashmir which can be exposed by obtaining information and putting it to the
public to make the government accountable.
The speakers
said RTI could be used to trace the weaknesses in the administration by
documentation.
“People also
have to come forward and remain vigilant and use the instrument to make the
government accountable.”
The workshop
was attended by journalists and RTI activists.
“Reporters
use RTI very rarely to obtain the information because there is no dearth of
stories in the valley,” journalists said and asked the speakers to hold a work
for journalists so that they use the instrument to report the stories.
Deputy Editor
of Scroll.in, Nitin Sethi said that RTI is a tool for investigative journalism
and fact-based reporting.
He said
whenever there is any kind of wrong in the application reply the information
providers always blame the system for that not the individuals.
“Whenever
there are any kind embezzlements, RTI activists should put that in public
domain. There are chances of black mailing even among the government officials,”
he said.
In the
programme, Venkatesh Nayak of CHRI presented a case study titled “Use of RTI by
the media abroad” which highlighted a number of cases which were highlighted
with the help of the law.
“The more an
activist shows transparency the more they would able to expose,” he said.
The J&K
Government enacted the Jammu and Kashmir Right to Information ACT (JKRTI) in
March 2009.
The Act
emerged as a powerful tool for civil society to promote transparency and hold
those in power accountable.
The Right to
Information Act, 2005 has helped to expose some of the most infamous scams in
the history of India.
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