Prelude to the Right to Information Act
To ensure the peoples full-fledged involvements in political activities the commitment of Bangabandhu was to consolidate peoples power as the calculators of their own strength
Professor Dr. Khurshida Begum
It is a political ballad zealous for liberty and dignity of the humanity, - it is the blazing Speech, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman delivered on 7 March, 1971. The discourse of political civilization has recorded the Voice of Freedom ever virtuous with the values of a struggling soul against what is malevolent and mischievous causing deprivation and damage, exploitation and exhaustion of the millions. What is more significant, the speech was not an end in his own land, it provides some mantling political guidelines to settle a number of conflicts and chaos in different parts of the world, i.e, religious secularism, race and ethnic neutralism, liberalism and universalism in ethno-cultural nationalism to assume responsibility for the cause of human emancipation all around. This is an unique creation of the spirit of nationalism, rare in history that the Bengalis are directed to take it granted that they are not only for themselves, but also for others. The marvel of this Speech was the deliverance of political leadership to the people of the land. Millions of the people were empowered and asked to exercise their Right to take DECISION voluntarily for the protection of their interests and national prestige. Bangabandhu said, if he is no more there to pass order (Hukum in Bangla) at the critical moment people themselves should take decision for their destiny and determine their course of struggle as necessary. Thereby he asserted in full conviction regarding the unmistakable ultimate Authority and Power of the People in their own political system.
This one sentence is enough to confirm the core value of the Right to Information (RTI) of the people. The enactment of the RTI Act, 2009 in Bangladesh is justified by the Jatyo Sangsad (legislature) as follows:
Whereas all powers of the Republic belongs to the people and it is necessary to ensure right to information for the empowerment of the people
Section 4 of the RTI Act, 2009 reads: Subject to the provisions of this Act, every citizen shall have the right to information from the authority and the authority shall, on demand from a citizen, be bound to provide him with the information. Article 2.f explains, Information includes decisions, policies, programmes, projects, structural-functional aspects, budget, sanctions, expenditure, in a word, anything of the public administration meant for the welfare of the people and funded by public money.
This right recognizes the legal entry of the citizens into any component of the state administration. Thereby the people as the OWNER of the state can play their role authoritatively to critically review the state administration and find out the nature of the government whether it is exploitative, suppressive, oppressive or not! This is the power of Information.
In a democracy, there is no scope for any guardianship from any bloc to take care of peoples interest. The political leaders are to educate and awaken the people to take decision for the state they belong to. People are to supervise, criticize or cooperate the government as the situation demands. This is the way of regular participation of the people in the day to day affairs of the state.
Free flow of information into public life is, therefore, an inevitable condition to build public awareness and subsequent participation.
Again, we may refer to Bangabandhu. The first sentence of his Speech of March 7, 1971 can be recollected. He addressed the people, My Brothers, you all know everything and you understand everything This very assertion indicates, people throughout the country were well informed about the exploitative political system of Pakistan as the aftermath of the realization of communal Two-nation theory of Mr. Jinnah resulting in the birth of Pakistan with its East and West wings divided by about 12 hundred miles of India. Following the address, mentioned above, Mujib informed the people with a brief account of his conversations with the military and political leaders of Pakistan as well as his experiences and consequent political policies and demands. In fact, years after years in his regular socio- political-cultural intercourse with the people, huge authentic information, provided by the Bengali civil servants of Pakistan, precious findings of the Bengali and foreign intellectuals, researchers or journalists regarding the discriminating public administration of Pakistan had been regularly delivered to the people of the remote corners of the country by him. Thereby a WELL INFORMED, knowledgeable civil society developed to stand in protest. The leadership of Bangabandhu is to be credited beyond arguments, for ensuring the wholehearted political participation of the people of Bangladesh from all the walks of life to protect their national as well as personal interests hampered in the state of Pakistan. With his passion of love for the people and patience to liberate the land from the clutches of the autocrats of Pakistan he moved around the country, informed and explained before the people the hardcore theories of democracy, military autocracy, Two-economy proposal, national interests, national power, peoples voting right in a democracy etc. in Peoples Language. Again and again he was jailed and Released again, he dedicated himself more vehemently than ever to the liberation of Bengal He went about East Pakistan delivering one seditious speech after another (Cyril Dunn, The Observer, London, March 28, 1971). There was nothing superficial, the inner strength of his Six-point movement which achieved overwhelming support of the people was based on solid information about political, economic and military administration of Pakistan.
In other words, to realize peoples full-fledged involvements in political movements the commitment of Mujib was to consolidate peoples power as the calculators of their own strength which was cemented by their secular unity and self-respect built on information about their history and glorious heritage, of language and literature. He built up their confidence as the owners of the resources of their country, patriotism to protect the land and the people; lastly, their capacity for political movements and achievements.
At this stage no super power, nothing can stand to subjugate a people. We hear Bangbandhu saying, to the foreign journalists My people are united. Do you think machine guns can really extinguish the spirit and soul of my people! This stage of peoples awareness and firm stand were concreted by truthful, not any airy information. Unless and until people know everything about the political and economic states of affairs how they would come out to voice freely for and against any public policies and programs and exercise their right as the owner of the state!!
As for the prelude to the peoples Right to access information the constitution, promulgated in 1972 under the committed leadership of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, enshrines the direction what was taken to open another fundamental chapter of democracy in Bangladesh:
Right to Information Act, 2009- to make provisions for ensuring free flow of information and peoples right to information. Whereas freedom of thought, conscience and speech is recognized in the Constitution of the Peoples Republic of Bangladesh as one of the fundamental rights and right to information is an inalienable part of freedom of thought, conscience and speech;. It is hereby enacted the law.
Regarding the peoples legal right as the owner of the state Bangabandhu also instructed the civil servants. Whatever things you find today in Bangladesh belong to the seventy five (2017: 16+) million people and have been done at the cost of peoples money (December 10, 1974). He also told in his Address to the officials of Public Administration in 1975, Those of you who have been associated with the administration of this country have seen, from your experiences and through your duties that our administrative structure is detached from the people. There is not much real connection. Those of us, who have gone to exercise governmental powers, have shown a guardian-like attitude as if we are the masters and the people are our servants. This mentality cannot continue in an independent countryYou will be accountable to your people for everything. What is the need for too much luxury in this country, where people die of hunger? Everyone should stand up against corruption. We must mobilize the people against corruption.
Right to Information Act, 2009 echoes the instructions of the Father of the Nation: Whereas if the right to information of the people is ensured, the transparency and accountability of all public, autonomous and statutory organizations and of other private institutions constituted or run by government or foreign financing shall increase, corruption of the same shall decrease and good governance of the same shall be established.
In this August 2017, in the month of his great demise or Shahadat Baron in Bangla, we, the people of Bangladesh salute the Father of the Nation for founding the unfailing sprit of democracy in the political orientation of our millions.
The writer is Information Commissioner, Information Commission Bangladesh
