1.5 Protection of confidential sources of information is guaranteed by law. ANALYSIS: According to the provisions of the communication law, professional secrecy constitutes a right and an obligation for journalists who must respect the confidence of a person who gives them information under the seal of confidentiality. However, and according to the same law, journalists may be forced by the courts to reveal their sources of information in certain cases (regarding secrets of national defence or economic strategy, manifest breaches of state security, information regarding children or adolescents as well as confidential information relating to judicial enquiries and procedures). In practice, journalists are often intimidated and put under pressure to reveal their sources. Due to the lack of legislation on access to information, the protection of confidential sources of information is not guaranteed. Provisions on access to information have been included in the White Paper on the new communication law. A law on access to information is currently in gestation and adoption of such legislation can only strengthen good governance practised by the state. The current impasse in the legislative process of adopting the new communication law may extend sine die the discretionary powers of public authorities in this field, allowing them to continue dispensing official information only in droplets and classifying them as “confidential”. SCORES: Individual scores: 1, 1, 1, 3, 1, 1, 1, 3 Average score: 1.5 1.6 Public information is easily accessible, guaranteed by law, to all citizens including journalists. ANALYSIS: Gaining access to official information often resembles an obstacle course. Most official files are classified as confidential or as state secrets. Transparency and communication are not yet part of the organisational culture of the administration and since there is no law on access to information officials often seek refuge behind their obligation to be cautious and protect the integrity of the state in order not to disclose the data in their possession. Being afraid of being reprimanded or even sanctioned, officials rarely take responsibility and often prefer to refer people to their superiors who act in the same way. Downstream, information is rarely available immediately and sometimes enquiries are not followed up. 27