Bence Gáspár Tamás, journalist of index.hu requested access to data on investments related to Metro Line 4, including data on direct and indirect effects on employment and information on environmental effects.
He also requested public interest data that is necessary in order to prove that medium-term economic and social benefits are in proportion with the spend funds. The Capitol Municipality refused access to the requested data, therefore the journalist has initiated legal proceedings. The HCLU will take on the legal representation of the journalist at Court on January 31st.
In yet another assault on freedom of expression and information, the Hungarian government adopted a new Constitution on Monday 18 April which will abolish independent oversight of the public’s right to know.
The Court of Appeal declared in its final judgment on the 21th of January 2009, that the minutes of the government meetings are data of public interest. Unfortunately, much information won’t be available for the public.