World

Request for Access to Information goes to court for an extension of 80 years

OTTAWA – An Ottawa researcher is asking a judge to order Canada’s national archives to speed up work on his request for old RCMP records after he was asked to Wait at least 80 years for a response.

In a notice of filing in Federal Court, Michael Dagg said that the Library and Archives Canada “has failed to establish any valid basis for an unusual extension of time” to process the application. under the Access to Information Act.

This case is just the latest example of the frustration and long delays many users experience with access laws, especially when trying to get historical records.

In March 2018, Dagg filed a request for access to the Library and Archives for records on Project Anecdote, a fraud and corruption investigation by the RCMP in the late 1990s and early 2000s. .

The archives identified 780,000 pages of paper and microfilm records, including investigative reports, witness statements, summary notes, exhibits, search warrants and communications with foreign governments .

The Library and Archives said it would need an extension of 29,200 days to process the request, giving a due date of March 25, 2098.

Dagg, a longtime user of access laws, said in an interview he asked for RCMP records out of curiosity about the police investigation. He called the delay “outrageous”, saying that hosting agencies should have a more constructive plan.

Dagg’s attorney, Paul Champ, said that asking for an extension “counted in decades is a bad joke for Canadians.”

“It’s sad that government agencies see access to information law as an inconvenience that they can ignore. Libraries and Archives Canada should make it accessible to Canadians, not Canadians, not Canadians. not help bury government secrets.”

In May 2018, Dagg filed a complaint with the information commissioner, an ombudsman for users of access laws.

Trustee Caroline Maynard learned that the Library and Archives needed a year and a half to digitize documents and significantly more time to review special records and documents that were too sensitive to be disclosed.

The commissioner’s October 2021 report said consultations with the RCMP and the Department of Justice may be needed, potentially others, including foreign governments.

In addition, the 80-year estimate does not even take into account the information processing involved across a wide range of audiovisual and digital media.

Maynard concluded that while processing large volumes of records within the standard 30-day period specified in the access laws would interfere with the operation of the repository, an extension of 80 years would not be appropriate. physical.

She said the link between the reasons for being enhanced by the Library and Archives and the length of the extension is not fully explained, nor has the archives demonstrated that the work needed to provide access for “any materially shorter period” of more than 80 years would interfere with its operation.

In March 2021, the Library and Archives introduced a new 65-year timeframe for processing requests.

Even so, the commissioner’s report said the organization had not identified or procured the necessary resources to process the request, nor worked to complete it in any meaningful way.

Maynard offered to respond to the request “immediately”, but the Library and Archives refused to budge.

The director of librarians and archivists said prioritizing completion “is simply not possible without severely impacting the operation of the LAC, and in particular, its ability to maintain equitable services in the future.” meeting the requirements of other Canadians.”

Dagg wants the court to order the Library and Archives to process the records in a timely manner and to issue a temporary, quarterly release of response documents while processing of other records continues.

Champ said the information commissioner’s findings were essentially ignored, demonstrating how broken the system was.

“If the Federal Court is unable to stop this willful violation of the law by the Archives of Canada, then the Court will make clear why so serious reform is needed.”

This Canadian Press report was first published on January 6, 2022.

.

Source link

news7h

News7h: Update the world's latest breaking news online of the day, breaking news, politics, society today, international mainstream news .Updated news 24/7: Entertainment, Sports...at the World everyday world. Hot news, images, video clips that are updated quickly and reliably

Related Articles

Back to top button