Freedom of Information (FOI)
Sites on the Internet

Australia 

• Freedom of Information Review
• Office of the Information Commissioner (Queensland)
• Office of the Information Commissioner (Western Australia)
• Freedom of Information Act 1982
• Freedom of Information (Fees and Charges) Regulations 1982
• Freedom of Information (Miscellaneous Provisions) regulations 1982
• Media Law Workstation University of Technology Sydney : FOI Materials
• EFF "Australia (FOIA)" Archive
• Freedom of Information User's Guide, Tasmanian State Government  
• Review of FOI legislation by PPAS
Australian Law Reform Commission Discussion Paper 59 - Response by the Public Policy Assessment Society Inc.
• "The Age" coverage of Victoria's secret police files

This web page follows a series of stories looking at the Victorian state police force. In 1983 the police were ordered to destroy an extensive range of Special Branch files kept on Victorian activists. Many of these files were secretly kept and updated. FOI requests by those placed under survelliance made after 1983 failed to reveal the existence of these files.

Asia and South Pacific

• Hong Kong Government Access to Information
This page outlines Hong Kong government policy on access and contains links to the full text of the Code on Access to Information, the internal guidance notes for government agencies on how to apply the Code, and contact details of all departmental Access to Information Officers

Canada

• Project - Alasdair Roberts, "Assessing Canada's FOI Laws"
The aim of this research project was to assess the condition of freedom of information (FOI) laws in Canada.The project began in September 1997. A final report was made public in April 1998. This study was conducted by the School of Policy Studies at Queen's University. The principal investigator for the study

  was Professor Alasdair Roberts. Support for the study was provided by the Canadian
  Newspaper Association.
• Access to Justice Net
WWW site for Canadian justice and legal information and services. The Access to Justice Network (ACJNet) opens doors to legislation, people and organizations, publications, databases and discussion forums on justice and legal issues. These resources are organized under subject headings such as: aboriginal people, crime prevention, plain language, women, and youth. This link will take you directly to the FoI list.
• Information Commissioner of Canada
• Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner/Ontario

This site also has a very comprehensive listing of other access to information and information privacy sites. See other sites
• Ontario Government Management Board Secretariat
• Amendments to Ontario's FOI and Protection of Privacy Acts
Ontario is the biggest province in Canada, with about 40 per cent of the population of Canada. So the changes in the law are significant. The document was composed before the changes happened. They have happened. The efforts of the CAJ and the Canadian Committee for the Protection of Journalists to stop the changes were in vain.
• British Columbia
This site provides general information regarding the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act of British Columbia. In particular, it contains information concerning The Director of Records (the Directory) which is published to assist the public in accessing general records or personal information held by the government. The site comprehensively lists the type of information that is contained in the Directory. Suggestions relating to request structure, fee information and review procedures are also provided.
• Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Commission of B.C.
The Information and Privacy Commissioner has been appointed to promote and protect the information and privacy rights of British Columbians as guaranteed in the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. . The site includes the following: the Act, Orders of the Commissioner ( includes 144 orders made between 1994 - 1997), Investigations made, Submissions by the Commissioner to other Public Bodies and the Annual Report .
• BCJC Journalists for Freedom of Information

This site was started as a resource project to help journalists comment on the B.C. government's planned legislative review of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. The site is still under construction, but includes a survey form, links to various FOI sites around the continent and examples of stories broken through FOI. BCJC is a group of print, radio and television journalists, media lawyers and media organizations such as the Canadian Association of Journalists, B.C. Press Council, B.C. & Yukon Community Newspapers, B.C. Newspaper Foundation and B.C. Freedom of Information and Privacy Association. Eventually, they hope to have an interactive form letter site that will allow journalists (and others) to fill out requests electronically and send them via email to those agencies now linked through the Internet. (There will also be printing capabilities for those who want to send their requests by snail mail to agencies still not with the program.)
• Alberta Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy
• Nova Scotia - Department of Justice

Europe

• Christoph Sobotta's Freedom of Information in the European Union
• Swedish Government Data Act Committee
This site contains a summary of the Committee's proposals to review the provisions of Chapter 2 of the Freedom of the Press Act (one of the four acts which form the Swedish Constitution) concerning citizens' rights to gain access to public documents.
• Swedish Union of Journalists
Provides information about Swedish law on access to official documents.
• Access to Public information Conference
Stockholm 27/28 June 1996: A key to commercial growth and electronic democracy. This site now contains most of the conference papers in either browse and/or download versions.
• Europa

WWW-server for the European Union
• European Code of Conduct for Access to Commission and Council documents
• Commission of the European Communities 1994 decision on public access
• United Kingdom Government on Line
• Ireland
Information Commissioner Ireland
Department of Finance - FOI Page
University College Cork - FOI Home Page

Israel

• Shatil
SHATIL: Empowerment and Training Center for Social Change Organizations  in Israel.

New Zealand

• Office of the Privacy Commissioner of New Zealand
• Links to decisions by courts, tribunals and Ombudsman broken link

This site aims to list the Courts, Tribunals, Statutory Authorities, and such other bodies in New Zealand which make legal or quasi-legal decisions and reports. It provides, or links to, brief information on their jurisdiction; governing legislation; administering bodies; contact details; the availability of reported (published) and unreported (unpublished) decisions; information on indexes to the decisions; and library holdings of decisions.

United Kingdom

• UK Government White Paper on Freedom of Information - December 1997
This takes you to the key site to stay up todate with Freedom of Information developments in the United Kingdom.
• UK Select Committee on Public Administration: Third Report Freedom of Information 1998

United States

• Access Reports

For more than 20 years, Access Reports has been the news source of choice for professionals concerned with access to government information  Access Reports' publications keep subscribers up to date on all freedom of information and privacy issues, tracking policy trends while summarizing and analyzing court decisions, legislation (federal, state, and --in Canada-- provincial),  regulations, and agency guidance. Access Reports provides the most comprehensive coverage available of access issues in the United States, Canada, and internationally.
• American Communication Association WWW
This site includes a wealth of information pertaining to the USA Freedom of Information Act. It includes such topics as 'A citizens guide to using FOIA', 'Citizens Information Bill of Rights' and the Clinton Administration Policy on Freedom of Information. ' Other general information is also provided such as the Act, A step by step guide on how to use FOIA, the Act's exemptions and kit information.
• Brechner Center
The Report offers a monthly summary of media law developments in the state of Florida. The site also provides The Reporters Sourcebook, a list of state media law resources in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, and a link to the Florida Statutes and Florida attorney general opinons. In addition, the cite has hotlinks to several other cites focusing on freedom of information and telecommunications law.
• Epic FOI
Electronic Privacy Information Center
• National Freedom of Information Coalition
• Links to FoI web pages for various states of the United States
• First Amendment Project
The First Amendment Project (FAP) is a non-profit, public interest law firm established in 1991 to protect, defend, and further the rights to participate in and know about government activities and speak freely about public issues. FAP offers direct legal representation to individuals, civic organizations, journalists and media organizations involved in petition and free speech or right-to-know cases, provides litigation support services to other attorneys, raises public awareness about issues of free speech and access to government, and provides education and advice on First Amendment issues. The First Amendment Project's litigation efforts focus on two main areas of First Amendment law: anti-SLAPP defense and enforcement of open government laws.
• The National Security Archive

THE NATIONAL SECURITY ARCHIVE, is an independent, non-profit research institute and library, for people who are interested in international relations and how the U.S. foreign policy bureaucracy functions.
Since its inception in 1985, the goal of the National Security Archive has been to document recent U.S. policy and enrich research and public debate on the often hidden process of national security decisionmaking. Scholars, journalists, present and former officials and many others have long recognized the need for a systematic approach to obtaining and providing access to declassified national security
documentation. Through its collection, analysis and publication of previously classified government documents, the Archive is able to reconstruct U.S. policymaking on a variety of foreign, defense and intelligence issues and capture how government decisions are made --with important implications for ongoing policy.

To carry out its mission, the Archive combines a unique range of functions in one institution. It is simultaneously a research institute on international affairs, a library and archive of declassified U.S. documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, a public interest law firm defending and expanding public access to government information through the FOIA, and an indexer and publisher of the
documents.

• Society of Professional Journalists - FOI Resource Centre
The Society of Professional Journalists maintains this Web site as a tool to help journalists and non-journalists in their quest for information from federal and local governments in the United States.
FOIA Hall of Fame
A coalition of US media organizations have named a Freedom of Information Act Hall of Fame to honor individuals who have helped to develop and defend the Freedom of Information Act, FOIA Amendments and the Electronic FOIA (US). The group was honored during September 1996. Includes  brief sketches of the 24 individuals.
• FOI-L
Discussion list for USA state and local freedom of information issues. Located at Syracuse University.
• FOI Center
The Freedom of Information Center is a reference and research library in the University of Missouri School of Journalism on the Campus of the University of Missouri-Columbia. Information at this site is detailed and includes- Guides to FOI Center Resources, Federal and state FOI information, resources on controls of information other than FOI laws and links to government information that is now available online.
• Guides to FoI Center Resources
• Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing free legal help to reporters and news organizations.
• The Quill,
This site contains samples of FOI and investigative reporting stories.
• First Amendment Cyber-Tribune
• Evanville Courier - Indiana
This site contains an interesting  five part series "Open Records - Closed Doors about the operation of FOI in Indiana.
• Freedom of Information Clearing House
• Florida Keynoter FOI Page

Privacy and other access to information issues

• Privacy International
Privacy International (PI) is a human rights group formed in 1990 as a watchdog on surveillance by governments and corporations. PI is based in London, England, and has an office in Washington, D.C. PI has conducted campaigns throughout the world on issues ranging from wiretapping and national security activities, to ID cards, video surveillance, data matching, police information systems, and medical privacy.
• Privacy Resources - Politics of Information
Good collection of privacy links.