On the occasion of the International Rights to Know Day, nine awards recognizing the freedom of information were presented to the most open government bodies in Armenia, while the most closed government body was given a less-prestigious accolade in a ceremony today supported by the OSCE Office in Yerevan.
Ambassador Andrey Sorokin, Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan said that since its establishment the OSCE Office in Yerevan has been working with the Armenian authorities and civil society to improve the regulatory framework related to the freedom of information.
The independent jury of the annual "golden keys" and "rusty locks" awards recognized the Ministry of Justice as the best reformer in the area of freedom of information. The Office of the Armenian Government was named as an institution that has best implemented the Open Government Partnership Commitments; the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Emergency Situations was awarded for the best community initiative, while the Kotayk Governor's Office was acknowledged as the most transparent body.
Among the civil society winners, the Informed and Protected Consumer NGO received a golden key for the extensive use of the right for access to information. Lawyer Arayik Ghazaryan was named as the most consistent human rights advocate and Yerkir Media TV company and Radio Liberty were recognized as the media most active in covering freedom of information issues. The website of the Ministry of Agriculture was named the best in terms of access to information.
The negative prize in the form of a rusty lock was given to Armavir Municipality for not providing information.
The ceremony was organized by the Freedom of Information Centre of Armenia NGO in co-operation with the Armenian Young Lawyers Association with the financial support from the OSCE Office in Yerevan and the European Union.