Danish foreign ministry staff “gone stark raving mad?”

international | rights, freedoms and repression | news report Monday March 06, 2006 01:26 by Coilín ÓhAiseadha aat2004 at mail dot dk Máigh Nuad, Co. Cill Dara 086 060 3818

Award-winning journalist hammers ministry’s attempts to restrict freedom of information

In a striking departure from customary practice, the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday 3 March attempted to abolish the Danish principle of freedom of information by charging award-winning journalist Bo Elkjær a fee for copying documents requested under the Danish Open Administration Act. In return, Elkjær accuses the ministry of conducting “considerations of matters of principle” and charging fees that have no basis in the legislation, in an attempt to obstruct his access to official documents concerning Denmark’s invasion and occupation of Iraq.

In January, 2004, Elkjær was awarded the prestigious Cavling Prize, Denmark’s most coveted award for journalism, for his work in exposing the misinformation and disinformation with which the Danish government succeeded in gaining support for the ill-fated invasion of Iraq. Denmark has approximately 500 troops in the British-controlled area of southern Iraq.

The foreign ministry has blacklisted Elkjær, rejecting his frequent requests for an interview with Conservative foreign minister Per Stig Møller. In January this year, the ministry nevertheless reassured Elkjær that he was entitled to seek access to documents in accordance with the Danish freedom of information act, or Open Administration Act. But, following a period of “considerations of matters of principle”, the ministry has now demanded that Elkjær sign an undertaking to pay for each document copied.

Elkjær greets this latest attempt to obstruct his access to information with derision: “Have you gone stark raving mad?” he asks chief clerk Thomas Winkler and other staff at the ministry.

Elkjær points out that the Danish Open Administration Act – in stark contrast to the Irish legislation – makes no provision to charge journalists a fee for copying official documents.

Please read the dramatically entertaining exchange between Elkjær and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in translation below.

Subject: Complaint about decision on access to information
Date: Thu, 2 Mar 2006 13:47:41 +0100
From: "Bo Elkjær"
To: Thomas Winkler , ombudsmanden@ombudsmanden.dk, stm@stm.dk, um@um.dk, permol@um.dk

Dear Ombudsman Hans Gammeltoft Hansen

I would hereby like to complain about the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ refusal of my request for access to information, dated 31 January, 2006.

I refer to attached correspondence between the undersigned and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and to a letter from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the undersigned, sent CC to the Danish Ombudsman on 18 January 2006.

In summary, chief clerk Thomas Winkler wrote to the undersigned on 18 January 2006, in connection with my complaint about being blacklisted by Foreign Minister Per Stig Møller, that “the Minister for Foreign Affairs daily receives countless requests from both domestic and foreign media who wish to arrange an interview with the Minister for Foreign Affairs.” This was used as part of the argumentation for the fact that a decision had been taken in each individual specific application from the undersigned as to whether my request was relevant and had the minister’s interest – which it obviously does not have and has not had at any time during the almost three years for which I have been asking for an interview.

When I asked for access to these “daily countless requests from both domestic and foreign media”, I received the reply that “according to paragraph 4 section 3 of the Danish Open Administration Act, a request for information shall state the case or the documents with which the applicant wishes to become familiar. It is thus a prerequisite for the accommodation of requests for information that the party who wishes to gain access to the documents shall have at least a certain knowledge of the existence of a case or a document. It is the assessment of the Minister for Foreign Affairs that your request for access to information in the above is of such a general nature that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is not obliged to accommodate it, cf. paragraph 4, section 3 of the Open Administration Act.”

In my view, this refusal is completely, raving mad. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs cannot both inform me of the existence of these applications as the basis for a refusal and at the same time refuse to give me access to the applications with the justification that I do not have knowledge of the applications. This is just a smokescreen.

In the letter, dated 18 January 2006, chief clerk Thomas Winkler also wrote:

“In addition, it is noted that, in those cases where the Minister for Foreign Affairs chooses not to give an interview, the public, including journalists, can still receive information in accordance with the administrative regulations regarding freedom of information.”

If the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ refusal of 31 January is to be believed – and I would hereby like to test this by means of this complaint – then this statement is in fact untrue.

In addition, I would like to note that the Minister for Foreign Affairs’ refusal, dated 31 January 2006, does not fulfil the requirements of the Danish Open Administration Act regarding reference to access to redress.

Many kind regards,
Bo Elkjær, Ekstra Bladet

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From: Jacob Skude Rasmussen [mailto:jacsku@um.dk]
Sent: 3 March 2006 15:05
To: Bo Elkjær
Subject: Access to information

Dear Bo Elkjær,

Attached please find response regarding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ further processing of your requests for access to information.

Kind regards,
Jacob Skude Rasmussen

> >

Attached file: DOC013.PDF

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Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark
Asiatisk Plads 2
DK-1448 København K

3 March 2006

Journalist Bo Elkjær

Requests for access to information

Dear Bo Elkjær,

In the period from 18 January to 15 February, 2006, you have submitted a total of 15 requests for access to information into:
1) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ concrete assessments of your requests for interviews.
2) The Minister for Foreign Affairs’ diary in the period from 18 June, 2003 to 18 January, 2006.
3) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents regarding applications from domestic and foreign journalists and media for interviews in the period from 18 June, 2003 to 18 January, 2006.
4) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning persons taken prisoner and/or detained by Danish forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.
5) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning information about incidences of ethnic cleansing in Iraq, including incidences of ethnic cleansing in the Danish area of responsibility.
6) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning the reconstruction of the Iraqi oil infrastructure.
7) Access to all of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning contact between the Danish and American governments concerning the prison camp on Guantánamo.
8) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning the number of civilian casualties of the war in Iraq.
9) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning attacks on Iraqis working for Danes stationed in Iraq.
10) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning A.P. Møller’s and Danish industry’s contracts with the United States’ military.
11) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning errors, misinterpretations or miscomprehensions in Ekstra Bladet’s articles concerning the Iraq war.
12) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, letters, e-mail messages, memoranda, etc. concerning imprisonment of relatives of presumed Iraqi rebels.
13) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ papers, documents, memoranda, etc. concerning “Unresolved Disarmament Issues”, dated 7 March, 2003.
14) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ papers, etc. concerning the United States’ extraction of information from Iraq’s full and complete account, dated 8 December, 2002.
15) All of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ documents, memoranda, etc. concerning legal considerations about Iraq’s failure to collaborate with the UN as a basis to go to war.

As regards the first three requests for access to information, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has replied to you with letter of 1 February, 2006. In addition, you have received provisional replies of 2 and 23 February, respectively, concerning your other requests for access to information. The provisional replies stated that the extent and number of your requests gave the Ministry of Foreign Affairs cause for considerations of matters of principle.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has now completed its considerations of matters of principle and will begin to go through the relevant documents. It is expected that you will receive a final response to your requests in the course of three months after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has received your consent to pay a fee for copying, cf. below. The deadline of three months must be seen in the light of the extent of your requests.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will charge a start fee of DKK 10 for copying in each case, plus a subsequent DKK 1 for each copy. As it is noted that several thousand copies will probably be taken, you are requested to please inform the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in writing that you agree to pay the fee mentioned.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will not commence the processing of your requests before such a declaration has been received from you.

Kind regards,
[signed]
Thomas Winkler
chief clerk

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Subject: Complaint re decision on request for access to information (was: Re: Access to information)
Date: Fri, 3 Mar 2006 15:45:44 +0100
From: "Bo Elkjær"
To: Jacob Skude Rasmussen , um@um.dk
Cc: ombudsmanden@ombudsmanden.dk
Files: DOC013.PDF (393 KB)

Dear Jacob Skude Rasmussen

Thank you for informing me of the Minister for Foreign Affairs’ considerations. I would just like to hear whether I have understood correctly:

On 18 January you tell me that I can take a running jump if I think I might be permitted to speak to Minister for Foreign Affairs Per Stig Møller, but that I can ask for access to information under the freedom of information act – which I then do.

In letters dated 2 and 23 February, you then write that my requests for information give rise to “considerations of principle” and now, 3 March, you tell me that you will begin to process my requests for information just as soon as I have submitted signed declarations that I will pay for the information.

Have you gone stark raving mad?

Where in the Open Administration Act is a legal basis provided to delay requests for access to information indefinitely while “considerations of principle” are conducted?

Which kinds of “considerations of principle” have a legal basis in the Open Administration Act while requests for information are delayed indefinitely?

Where in the Open Administration Act is a legal basis provided to demand signed declarations before requests for access to information are processed?

As I read the letter of today’s date from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the ministry’s “considerations of principle” are solely a matter of how one in practice can ignore and derail the Open Administration Act to which you yourselves even refer. I intend therefore to complain about this decision to the Ombudsman today.

I am complaining about the severely delayed response time and processing of the case, the substance of your “considerations of principle” itself and the breach of the Open Administration Act that has taken place.

Kind regards,
Bo Elkjær, Ekstra Bladet