PUBLIC ACCESS TO OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS

Public administration in Sweden differs from that in other countries in one important respect: all central government and local government activities must take place in the full light of public scrutiny. This means that the public has the right to access information and documents that are kept by public authorities. This right is guaranteed in the constitution and many Swedes consider it to be an indispensible part of of the democratic process.

The principle of public access has a long history, appearing for the first time in the country's constitutional legislation as early as in the eighteenth century. Public access is the general rule, secrecy the exception. This means that legal justification is always required before a public authority can refuse access to documents or information. The principle of public access also applies to courts and elected assemblies such as the Riksdag and municipal councils, whose proceedings are open to the public.

Public access is important on democratic grounds. It also ensures equality before the law, People who are dependent on the workings of a public agency or authority ought to have full powers of access so they can scrutinize the way in which their case is being dealt with. When everything takes place in the light of public scrutiny there is less risk of excesses or abuses. If the public authorities work openly they are also under great pressure to work efficiently. Unnecessary bureaucracy becomes visible and can be subjected to criticism.

All public authorities and agencies are obliged to keep a register of documents to facilitate public access. The register also has to include material covered by confidentialitv rules. It is therefore possible to keep the contents of a document secret, but rarely its existence. Whenever a public authority or agency refuses to release a document, an appeal may Ø lodged with a court. It is not unusual for courts to decide in favour of the person lodging the appeal. Detailed praxis has accumulated relating to the way public authorities and agencies should act in order to guarantee the greatest possible degree of public access.

Sweden does of course have confidentiality rules. Personal documents, such as purely private letters, are not public. "Legitimate working procedures" may not be disturbed by compelling an official to release documents that are not yet completed.

But generally making an exception to the principle of openness and accessibility requires explicit legal motivation. There is basically one particular law in this respect, the Official Secrets Act. Regulations concern national security, government finances, the prevention and prosecution of crime or the protection of information relating to private individuals or companies, among other things. The difference between Sweden and countries lacking a principle of public access is not that Sweden has fewer secrecy rules, but that their implementation is powerfully regulated, mainly as a result of the fundamental principle that open public access is the primary rule and the major objective.

It is the law which determines whether a piece of information is confidential: Confidentiality is not created by using a rubber stamp marked "secret".

Public authorities and agencies are required to process requests from the public for access to documents and information rapidly. The wish to view a public document must be dealt with as soon as an authority or agency has staff present and requests for public information must always be answered directly. A person who has requested access to a document should have received an answer within 24 hours. The public has the right to view documents where they are kept which means that a public authority or agency must provide a place for those who wish to sit down in peace and quiet. The public does not have the right to take home original documents, but does have the right to receive copies. Regardless of how much time it takes, no fee may be charged for retrieving the documents.

In this context, it is important to remember that every employee of a public authority or agency enjoys freedom of expression. The employees have the right to speak to reporters, write letters to the editor or articles etc. The employees must, however, remain within the bounds of the Official Secrets Act but the freedom to inform actually entails the right to violate professional secrecy on occasion.

The freedom to inform in this sense does not apply to all types of confidentiality. In the first place, the right does not apply to documents, but only to the oral provision of information. Secondly, it does not apply to what is known as qualified confidentiality.

In practice, the freedom to inform may be used for any purpose at all. No "good intention" is required.

People who make use of their freedom to inform may not be traced by the authority or agency concerned. Investigating such sources is prohibited.

In the run-up to the fall 1994 referendum on Sweden's entry into the European Union, the future of the principle of public access was one of the major issues. Since a legal tradition of this kind is lacking in most EU countries, a lot of people were afraid that public access in Sweden would be diluted by integration into the European legal community.

But in Sweden's entry agreement there is a special declaration concerning the principle of public access. Swedes continue to be proud of their right to public access, which they regard as one of the most important cornerstones of democracy.