Access to Information in the new EU Countries

Presenting this poster intents to highlight the work of the Access to Information Programme (AIP) in Bulgaria. The AIP is a key actor in promoting access to especially governmental, legal and environmental information for the citizens and inhabitants of the Bulgarian state. Since the decline of the communist regime and the participation of Bulgaria as a fully adequate member of the EU, Bulgaria had to face fundamental changes in dealing with a new democratic understanding of access to information. Especially „legislative and executive branches of power lack a general concept for the development of a systematic, comprehensive regulatory framework regarding the right of access to information and the exceptions to it.” (AIP 2005, 13) This transition progress is still under construction. The work of the AIP is very important for the improvement and the control of the right to information by the public. My presentation includes the mission statement, facts about the establishment and a list of goals of the AIP as well as statistical data about applications and refusals for information in 2004.