SECTOR 1 Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: 1.3 (2008 = 2.9; 2006 = 2.6) 1.8 Public information is easily guaranteed by law, to all citizens. accessible, Law N°98-012 of January 19, 1998 determines general rules that govern relations between the administration and users of public services. It expresses the principle of access to administrative documents. However, this law limits the categories of accessible information. It allows all citizens to consult Government documents, with the exception of those protected by the law. According to Article 12 of this law: “Access to administrative documents of nominative character is free. Excluded from that category are all files, reports, studies, reviews, statistics, instructions or circulars that include any description of administrative procedures or interpretation of ‘rights’. In its implementation, this law is very cumbersome to administer and accessing such information largely depends on the determination of the person trying to obtain the information. Worse, this law in its Article 15 establishes a list of documents to which citizens must not have access. It states that: “The freedom of accessing administrative documents does not include documents of which consultation can lead to: • the secret of the Government deliberations; • the secret of national defence or foreign policy; • the safety of the state and the public security; • the progress of judicial proceedings or preliminary operations to such proceedings, except by authorisation from a competent authority; • the secret of private life, staff and medical files; • the secret in commercial and industrial matters; • in search of fiscal and customs infringements; or • broadly speaking on all the information protected by the law.” AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER MALI 2010 87