I was saddened to read of the recent death of Shehla Masood, who joins nearly a dozen Right to Information (RTI) activists who have been killed in India since 2008.
The RTI movement campaigns for the fair implementation of the Right to Information Law, passed in 2005. The law grants a petitioner the right to requested information from government (excluding defence and national security) within 30 days, or within 48 hours in case of information concerning the life or liberty of a person.
RTI activists believe many petitioners are being denied this right to information because of corrupt practices, so by campaigning for its fair implementation they are promoting participatory development, strengthening democratic governance and facilitating effective delivery of socio-economic services.
VSO, its partners and volunteers are working to provide the most disadvantaged with a voice to speak out for their rights. VSO India works with many partners who promote RTI. I spoke to Praveen Kumar, VSO India's Programme Manager for Active Citizenship, who said that as governance ‘is at the heart of our work we look into participating in such discussions and processes particularly which affect the poor and marginalised.'
On a more positive note, anti-corruption activists and VSO are pleased that India has recently passed an anti-corruption law and ratified its signatory of the United Nations Convention against Corruption. VSO t VSO strongly lobbies for this convention in all countries it works.
For more information on VSO’s work on corruption, see www.vsointernational.org/vso-today/how-we-do-it/corruption-policy.asp
