One hundred and five countries were asked. Only 14 of them came up with useful answers in time. A global test of transparency on anti-terrorism measures showed "newer" democracies being more responsive than older and more established ones.
What Associated Press asked for
In January 2010 more than 100 reporters with the news agency Associated Press began filing access-to-information requests with governments around the world. The reporters wanted to know what records the governments held on the number of people who had been detained, arrested and convicted over the previous ten years under anti-terrorism laws, and the nationality of those people. AP also asked for other records relating to anti-terrorism laws.
35,000 convictions, but mostly an estimate
In short, the answer was that some 35,000 people had been convicted for terrorism in the previous decade, compared with a few hundred a year before 9/11. But the figure was mostly an estimate, as only 14 governments provided full answers. Another 38 governments eventually answered some of the questions and provided some data. On paper, more than 5.3 billion people in the world are to some extent covered by freedom-of-information laws. In reality only half of the governments follow the laws, AP reporter Martha Mendoza concluded.
Newer democracies more responsive
In spite of the limited results, the test also produced some striking findings. Martha Mendoza reported: "Newer democracies were in general more responsive than some developed ones. Guatemala confirmed the AP request in 72 hours, and sent all documents in 10 days. Turkey sent spreadsheets and data within seven days. Mexico posted responses on the Web. By comparison, Canada asked for a 200-day extension. The FBI in the United States responded six months late with a single sheet with four dates, two words and a large section blanked. Austria never responded at all."
A wide spread across Europe
In an interactive "rollover-a-country-map" of the globe, AP divided the 105 countries into five categories, from "responsive" to "rejected". The map showed a wide spread of results within Europe.
Nineteen European countries, with a heavy weight to the east, were judged "responsive": Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Turkey and Ukraine. At the other end, Belgium, Bulgaria and Denmark directly rejected the requests. And from Austria, the Czech Republic, Greece, Iceland, Moldova, Slovakia and Slovenia there was no reaction at all.
Why the map may mislead
Although illustrative of how differently governments react to freedom-of-information requests, the results might not give the whole picture of how the laws function. Denmark and Belgium, for example, were grouped together with DR Congo as rejective, because their laws carry exemptions covering the release of information about criminal investigations. Had information been requested in other fields, Denmark and Belgium would probably have achieved more flattering results.
The test and its results were published as a news story on AP's ordinary platforms, and the material was also made available on AP's Facebook page with links to the interactive map and to the source documents received, in their languages of origin.
What next
Following the global test, AP was looking for new issues to approach, Martha Mendoza told Toby McIntoch at FreedomInfo.org: "We would like to continue to test FOI laws worldwide, and we are open to ideas about collaboration with researchers, but… 1.) We would need to come up with something very compelling to ask for. We're hoping readers will submit ideas on our Facebook page to get that rolling. The terror arrests and convictions story was important. What next? 2.) And we'd need to know that this is worth our time and effort. There are always cost-benefit balances to meet, and this has taken a lot of time and effort," she said.
Frequently asked questions
What was the global freedom-of-information test?
In January 2010, more than 100 Associated Press reporters filed access-to-information requests with governments around the world, asking what records they held on people detained, arrested and convicted under anti-terrorism laws over the previous ten years.
How many governments answered in full?
Only 14 of the 105 governments asked provided full answers in time. Another 38 eventually answered some of the questions and provided partial data.
What did the test find overall?
Some 35,000 people had been convicted for terrorism in the previous decade — though mostly as an estimate — and newer democracies such as Guatemala, Turkey and Mexico responded faster than several established ones, with Canada requesting a 200-day extension and Austria never responding.
Why might the country ranking mislead?
Denmark and Belgium were classed as rejective because their laws exempt information about criminal investigations; requests in other fields would probably have produced more flattering results for them.