Access to Information in Cambodia Amid the Pandemic
While the whole world celebrates the International Day for Universal Access to Information, as a journalist by profession, I am emboldened to write and share my thoughts on Cambodia’s right to information access and how this right has been affected during a time of crisis such as the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. I would say, this, to a certain extent, can’t fully represent the perception of the whole press community in the country as it is more my personal reflections based on my hands-on professional practices and observations.
This year’s theme is “access to information in times of crisis” as the world has been impeded by the ongoing pandemic. Thus, it is well agreed universally that the access to sufficient and reliable information becomes even more imperative because it can lead to minimizing risk of losing lives as well as assisting the authorities to cope with adverse effects and ensuring a sustainable future.
Despite its importance, the right to access to information might not be well comprehended by every country, especially the least developed nations where the legal environment and perception toward open access to information are not favorable to journalists. In some countries, the journalists’ right to access information has even been constrained, which requires greater attention.
Lacking Legal Framework for Public Information
From my own perspective, the status of information access in Cambodia has been long confined to a certain boundary due to the inadequate legal frameworks and understanding of the right, and unfortunately the current crisis has also made it increasingly challenging for people and especially journalists like us to gain access to quality information when need be.
Since Cambodia reported the first COVID-19 case in January, the most common problem we have encountered here when it comes to covering the infection is the less approachable officials.
We found out that it is not a stress-free moment to approach those in-charges when we wanted them to speak to us. It is even arduous when we pose tough questions to them because they can just refuse to answer.
Therefore, the provision of information by public officials is normally carried out on a voluntary basis and unofficially, not mandatory or compulsory. So, whether or not we can get information entirely depends on their moods and the types of issues into which we want to inquire.
This can be well understood because in Cambodia the culture of openness and disclosure of public information has barely existed, and the level of partnership between officials and the press has continued to be marginal. And the lack of legal frameworks, which promote “right to know” and legally embolden the authorities to provide sufficient and quality information to the public, has basically contributed to this problem.
It is worth noting that Cambodia is among the countries that do not have access to information law. As I am writing this, Cambodia has not yet endorsed the long awaited “Access to Information Law”-the legal ground that has been crucial for access to information. It has continued to be roamed around criticisms as human right groups argue that the draft law contains some below-standard elements that require adjustments.
Intimidating Laws against Media
Not only lack of legal mechanism is a problem for freedom of information access, but some existing laws have also been wrongly used to hinder journalists’ work and disrupt the flow of information during the crisis. Cambodia’s Criminal Code in particular contains some articles that vaguely touch upon the issue of public order and incitement. To me, it is absolutely problematic to define what can be considered as incitement, any act that disturbs public order and national security.
Moreover, I think the new law on state of emergency, which the Cambodian government had rushed to enact amid the pandemic, is also seen as the latest factor that more or less affects journalists’ work. This, to a certain extent, compels journalists to self-censorship as they fear they could risk being confronted with legal cases.
The challenge does not just stop there. The ugly truth is that, as some of my fellow journalists pointed out, during this tough situation, journalists might be bound to just being spoon-fed by the information the authorities want to release.
Some have complained that journalists should not continue to linger in spoon-feeding situation and get out to do their real job: digging deep into the issues. However, this should not be automatically translated into that journalists are going with the flow without trying their best, to do their professional journalistic works instead of being spoon-fed.
Of course, we all want to do what our profession requires. Will this be feasible, and affordable, when you run a small newsroom with limited financial and human resources while this source of income already has been hampered by the pandemic itself.
Lessening Trust for Media
The newsroom where I currently work can serve as an example when it comes to under-resourced and under-staffing situations. It is undermining our ability and capacity to dig deep into the issues and find things out because, each time we want to do this, what comes to our mind is- “Who will be doing this and who else will be doing the other things?”
In addition to above-mentioned issues, a rise of infodemic-a condition in which fake news is overwhelming and potentially generating virulent impacts on public health and safety-has also been driving a plummeting confidence and trust in journalism. I have seen some journalists claiming during the COVID-19 more trust in media increase but, in my opinion, it is not always the case, particularly in developing countries as we are still competing with social media contents that most people tend to consume. So, eroding credibility of the press due to growing unreliable and/or fake information during the pandemic has been further putting us in a very tough situation. Nowadays, it is obvious that public trust is declining towards media in general.
Time to Embrace Access to Information Once and for All
Despite all these problems, throughout this difficult time, one thing we all will have learnt and agreed upon is that the right of access to information is really critical and needs to be urgently promoted. This includes the means of exchange and provision of information, which has long been done informally and should be enhanced and carried out in a more transparent and timely manner.
Like many other fellow journalists, I am not pessimistic about what has been happening, and I remain hopeful that we will be there to fully embrace the principles of access to information in the future.
But, in order to achieve that, it really entails ample knowledge among our citizens, cooperation among stakeholders and collective actions. It is undeniable that, until our people can sufficiently comprehend their right of access to information, more of them will exercise this right properly and efficiently. This actually has more impact in pressuring the public authorities to provide necessary information to those who seek for, and take-action in response to the public need.
To facilitate this process, it is more important than ever that we can work together to ensure the legal framework that endorses effective provision of information that the public needs is well established. That means, the process of passing the law on information access should be accelerated. It is because a law, by its nature, provides a much clearer guidance and legally-binding enforcing mechanism. Thereby, it is effectively giving a well-defined scope and context as to the way information should be disseminated, and how rights should be safeguarded and embraced. Once we are armed with legal means and the authorities are obliged to provide information, we all can build together a more healthy and well-informed society.
Restoring Trust in Media
An enduring issue such as infodemic also offers an incentive for all stakeholders and especially the government and journalists to reflect on what they should do next all together. It is because I think fighting the pandemic may require a vaccine to activate the immune system, but combating infodemic requires collective action and collaboration between journalists, civil society and state institutions through timely and trustworthy information. Therefore, this necessitates that the authorities gradually instill and embrace a concept of openness and forge closer partnership with the press.
It should be emphasized that a crisis like COVID-19 is more of a natural process and, but it also brings us as a great deal of lessons to learn, act, reflect and prepare for future crisis. The great lesson is that our public increasingly needs more quality, accurate and timely information during the crisis, and beyond. For that, the only thing we all can do is to be ready and well-prepared to collaborate with relevant stakeholders, to adapt our reporting style(s), by figuring out the best and practical ways for the public as well as for sustaining our mission by channeling trust-worthy information for the public’s safety.
As a journalist, taking infodemic and the current state of access to information into account, part of our mission now is working to regain public trust. It is time to prove our trustworthiness and credibility in doing our work. This can be a reality only when we all recognize our flaws and limits, and begin to support each other and stand as a collective-front to speak in unison while dealing our common challenges.
Frankly speaking, I raise these issues as we still have a lot of room to improve in terms of capacity, quality reporting, and solidarity as a cohesive community. Through our work, our commitment and our determination, we can always figure out ways in which we can construct an indispensably reliable press community-where journalists like us can be sturdier, more resilient, and less scattered to pursue our joint mission-that will definitely serve public interest and inspire each of us to grow.
I am confident that, together, we will be there.
Author: Sao Phal Niseiy is Editor-in-Chief of Cambodianess, which is the English-language edition of ‘Thmey Thmey’ Media Online. Working with Thmey Thmey for 6 years as Deputy Editor-in-Chief in charge of international news, he has a keen interest in foreign affairs and the climate crisis.
*The views and opinions reflect in this article lies solely with the author.
Originally published at https://fojo.se.
