En busca de la igualdad y la justicia social para el acceso a la información: ¿la libertad de información es “libre” en Sudáfrica?
¿la libertad de información es “libre” en Sudáfrica?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18225/inc.soc.v16i1.7145Keywords:
acceso a la información, libertad de información, registros, archivos, SudáfricaAbstract
Como en muchos países del mundo, el acceso a la información en Sudáfrica es un derecho humano fundamental consagrado en la Constitución y, posteriormente, en las leyes de libertad de información (FOI, por sus siglas en inglés). Aunque la FOI es un derecho humano garantizado por la Constitución, hay pruebas de que el ejercicio de este derecho requiere un esfuerzo considerable y, en cierta medida, tiene un precio. El precio en el contexto de este estudio se refiere a las tasas de solicitud y acceso establecidas en la Ley de Promoción del Acceso a la Información de Sudáfrica, así como a la cantidad gastada en recursos y demandas interpuestas por ciudadanos de a pie que tratan de ejercer su derecho a acceder a la información pública. El objetivo de este estudio es explorar la libertad de acceso a la información pública en Sudáfrica, con el fin de establecer si los ciudadanos de a pie tienen libre acceso a la información orientada a la justicia social. Para llevar a cabo este estudio cualitativo, se realizaron entrevistas a expertos mediante la técnica Delphi y análisis de documentos para evaluar el precio del acceso a la información en Sudáfrica. Los resultados sugieren que el precio del acceso a la información es insostenible, especialmente para los grupos marginados cuyos derechos se violan a diario. Como consecuencia, los ciudadanos de a pie no tienen acceso a la información y, por tanto, no pueden participar en la toma de decisiones de los organismos públicos, tal y como rige el Estado democrático. Es necesario que el gobierno sudafricano adopte medidas para regular las tasas de libertad de información con el fin de garantizar la igualdad de acceso a la información para todos y hacer que la libertad de información sea “libre”.
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