Description
The knowledge on public officials actions encourages citizens to ask questions, strengthens democratic mechanisms and motivates public officials to act in a transparent way. It is essential for voters to have access to information during election campaigns. The project aims to extend and update www.MamPrawoWiedziec.pl (I have the right to know) database, existing since 2006. The database will offer updates on MPs and government officials, opinions and promises made by candidates in local elections and by MPs in the national and European parliament. We plan to: • Update and publish data on 700 people in public offices; • Develop and publish 60 useful analytical reports; • Provide voters with information on candidates in local elections (Candidates2014). Our partner is the Konin Action Association. Together we will invite local government watchdog organizations to cooperate and use the tools provided by us. Konin Action will be responsible for supporting the ‘local MamPrawoWiedzieć’ database.
Summary of project results
"The project ""Parliament and local government - we watch you. Use our methods"" was a joint initiative of the associations ""61"" and ""Konin Action"". The knowledge on who their representatives are and how they perform their tasks encourages citizens to ask questions, strengthens democratic mechanisms and motivates the authorities for transparent operation. It is particularly important that citizens have access to information during election campaigns. Our aim was to supply citizens with the knowledge on their representatives in local government and in the Parliament, and on candidates in local elections in Warsaw in 2014, as well as to create a network of local services under our patronage. Under the project, data and analyses on MPs, city presidents and candidates were supplied. In cooperation with over 20 organisations and experts, a questionnaire concerning experiences and views of candidates to Warsaw local government was developed, and 278 answers to the questionnaire were published, approx. 1500 financial disclosures were prepared, 102 CVs of politicians and a category ""central government"" were added to our database, 99 analyses and papers were published and promoted in media. The initiative to encourage local organisations to monitor their local governments met with wide interest: after 17 months 12 local MamPrawoWiedziec.pl. are active in Złotoryja, Kalisz, Lubartów, Ełk, Lublin, Zabrze, Radom, Toruń, Grodzisk, Suwałki, Kutno, Słupsk. It was decided that new localisations would be launched based on the methodology developed under the project: ""61"" offers free of charge the space on the server, launches a service with similar graphics and identical functions on a free platform, and a local partner - organisation or informal initiative - is required to regularly update the presented data. ""61"" and ""Konin Action"" are responsible for professional and promotional support, and coordination of activities, for which they receive separate financing. All parties agree to respect jointly developed code-agreement between initiatives launching local MamPrawoWiedziec.pl. Internally, the organisation gained competencies to analyse data and edit texts, and became a specialised team for data journalism. Our project will be continued under other grant competitions. "
Summary of bilateral results