Public Information: Persistent Non-transparency The draft opens another door to limit the right of access to information: government may refuse to disclose information if it deems the request has been filed in a ‘persistent’ manner and it would ‘significantly burden the operation of the target entity’. Access to information secured in the constitution of democratic…
The Citizens Network Watchdog Poland presents its opinion on the new legislation entitled: Openness/Transparency of Public Life. This opinion mostly focuses on the part of the draft act that concerns access to information. The draft bill concerns much broader phenomena. Overview of the opinions on that by Polish NGOs can be read on the Citizens…
Citizens are constitutionally entitled to observe and record plenary sessions of the Sejm and Senate [the two chambers of the Polish parliament]. Arguing such rights with the Marshal’s Guards barring a citizen from entering, however, is another matter altogether. The Senate Marshal, Mr Stanisław Karczewski, published on the Senate’s website a statement claiming that [opposition]…
The Law and Justice’s government maintains that it wishes to build a strong civil society. Contrary to these declarations, this is not reflected in the shape of the newest piece of legislation – an Act on the National Institute of Freedom. The Act on the National Institute of Freedom – Centre for the Development of…
Interventions In July 2016 Warsaw hosted a NATO summit. As there were multiple estimates regarding the cost of organising the event, we decided to send a request for public information to its main organiser, the Ministry of National Defence. We asked for disclosure of the report that the Ministry submitted to the prime minister after…
Since October 2016 I have observed that as regards the attitude of the authorities to free society we are moving dangerously close to the path taken by Russia and Hungary. The moment of particular importance was the month-long attack of the public television on civic organisations in which children of persons perceived by the government…
Martyna Bójko (Citizens Network Watchdog Poland): You have just defended your Master’s thesis at the University of Łódź, entitled “Local journalist vs local government – methods of wielding influence”. Was the choice of such subject motivated by your experiences as a local journalist? Are the pressures exerted by local governments on local press significant? Justyna…
2014 The first series of requests concerning Ministers’ schedules was sent by the Citizens Network Watchdog Poland on 1 July 2014. We asked 17 Ministries and the Prime Minister’s Chancellery to provide us with Ministers’ schedules, or at least information about meetings they have taken part in, their dates and participants. We became interested in…
Papers prepared for the European Centre for Not-for-Profit Law to be used during workshop session in Moldova “Implementation of the percentage mechanism: Practice and lessons learned from Central Europe” (September 13, 2016). In case of Poland it specifically concerned Good practices of reaching out to taxpayers in Poland by human rights and watchdog organizations. Learning…
A publication prepared for the Central European University describing the situation as regards fighting corruption in Poland in the years 1997-2015 from the Watchdog Poland’s perspective.
As we have been dealing with the transparency of political parties’ activity for quite a while, the time has come now for a short review. What have we managed to achieve? There is no clear-cut evidence of how (if at all) parties’ attitudes towards the right to information have changed. Nonetheless, it can be stated…
The English version of the short publication presenting the situation of local watchdogs in their local communities, prepared to provide more accurate and goal oriented support for this group of activists, journalists and organizations.
We live ever faster. In a multitude of everyday duties, we frequently lack time to stop and reflect on things around us that do not function very well – in our relationships, in a local community or in our town – and what we can do to make them work better. This is why, as…
The film sums up the systemic project aimed at capacity building o watchdog community in Poland. The project was funded under EEA and Norway Grants in the years 2014-2016 and implemented by Citizens Network Watchdog Poland and partners Homo Faber Association, Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, Court Watch Poland and Center for Citizenship Education.
This interview took place in March 2016. The name of the journalist is Mariusz Szczygieł. The local activits are the following: Alina Czyżewska, Gorzów Wielkopolski and Monika Bienias, village Czubajowizna, gmina Poświętne.
