[open-government] UK Government transparency update (and democracy?)

Mon Dec 13 16:20:29 UTC 2010

:

> David, and all
>
> Thanks for the various thoughts and perspectives, there are many different
> interesting angles to the relation between OGD and democracy that obviously
>  interest several people, and that need exploring. Great to see interest in
> this particular issue
>
> Hopefully at future camps we ll propose a panel or a workshop for those who
> may be interested (unless there is a veto?)
>
> Although the notion of democracy as someone has pointed out earlier in this
> thread is
> not black and white, and discussions could go on forever, simple questions
> such as
>
> 'does everyone have a voice?'
> 'is anyone entitled to their opinions?'
> 'does everyone have equal opportunities to speak and share their work?'
>
> can provide a rough indication of whether a process (an event, a project,
> an initiative, an agenda, a community etc)  is 'democratic' or not (pending
> more in depth analysis of the relevant facts)
>
> In fact, it is suggested that it would be important to make sure that every
> OGD related project would also at some point address the question 'how does
> this project contribute to a more democratic, fair and participatory
> society?' (for those of you involved in impact assessment, this may make
> more sense)
>
> Ii't s not very clear to the general public how can open data make a
> difference to their
> daily lives, and to their ability to make a contribution to governance of
> public affairs.
>
> Its an important area that needs to be explored, if we want OGD Initiatives
> in the world to be meaningful, and not just 'notional'
>
> To more specific points
>
> Dave
>
>>
>> I'm even okay if there are open data advocates who don't care about
>> democracy. I don't need everyone in the movement to think the same way I do.
>>
>>
>
> I am also okay with that of course (being democratic).
>
>  But I would say there is cause for concern if *nobody* in an OGD community
> (as reportedly  gathered at the camp) cares about democracy
>
>
>
>> MY own feeling is that open data and transparency (within limits) will
>> enhance democracy so even if they (or business interests) aren't motivated
>> by this, they will nonetheless be helping advance democracy.
>>
>
> I share similar feelings, but some of us in the community are  'scientists'
> and 'engineers'  we use facts as our term of reference, to top up our
> subjective impressions :-) . We are 'systematic' in this sense
>
> When I look for facts (how is open government data used to support
> democratic governance)  I find a lack of them, and a lack of discussions
> pertaining to them.
>
> But no worries, cause this means that there is work to be done, and thats
> what we are here for, provided we get a  chance  to speak.:-)
>
>
>> At this point however, the conversation has really gotten unhelpfully
>> abstract.
>>
>
> Well, I may not be able to share private correspondence just yet (maybe in
> a months or two after I have reviewed a whole lot of correspondence) but let
> me provide
> concrete example of omissions of facts that make the monitoring of a
> democratic process difficult, if not impossible:
>
> - in order to carry out some evaluation/monitoring we ask simple questions
> (among others) such as:
>
> did everyone have a voice?
>
> did everyone have the same access to the opportunities provided?
>
> (these questions can apply to any open governement initiative)
>
> For example, in relation to the OGDCamp:
>
> Which are the speakers/topics that were *not* allocated a slot?
>
> Is there any chance that these people may also not been allocated a
>  speaking slot at previous years?
>
> Are there similar patterns visible in other related events? (OGD camps and
> initiatives in other countries for example)
>
> Why isn't there a wiki where people can enter their suggestions for the
> agenda?
>
> Who is making the decisions relating to the agenda?
>
> Are these decisions taken in a public forum, or behind closed doors?
>
> is there any gender, racial, belief or political bias in the programme?
>
> is there a wiki where the public can review all the inputs and see if there
> is any bias
> in the agenda?
>
> etc etc
>
> A range of other concern arose from the kind of responses I got when asking
> tentatively some of the questions above , from no answer at all, to vague
> looks, to 'I was told to do this' I was told to say that'  'if we like them
> they get a slot' etc etc
> and nobody seems to be accountable for ensuring a fair and democratic
> process etc etc
>
> Dave and Roy, please do share any information/data you may have in relation
> to the above
> issues,
>
> The complete lack of information/data may point  to  systemic flaw of the
> OGD
> 'self governance' process
>
> Happy to explore in more in depth at the next opportunity
>
>
> Best
> PDM
> (apologies for delays in answering posts, but I am travelling and away from
> my email for some weeks)
>
>
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.okfn.org/pipermail/open-government/attachments/20101213/fee55a86/attachment-0002.html>