¿Por qué organizaciones y periodistas en Puerto Rico denuncian ataque al acceso a la información pública por proyecto del Senado? - El Diario NY
The Puerto Rican Senate approved controversial amendments to the Transparency Law despite widespread opposition from civil society, journalism associations, and academics. Critics argue that these changes fundamentally dismantle public transparency by doubling response timelines, allowing entities to easily classify information as confidential, and imposing bureaucratic hurdles that disproportionately affect citizens without digital access. The measure requires personal identification for requesters, raising serious concerns about privacy and potential retaliation, thereby weakening the mechanism intended to protect whistleblowers and journalists. This legislative shift is critically relevant to open data because it restricts the availability of essential public information and undermines the principles of accessibility and reuse. By permitting data delivery in non-open formats and increasing the time required to obtain records, the law creates significant barriers to algorithmic analysis, investigative reporting, and civic oversight. Effective open data ecosystems rely on timely, machine-readable information to ensure government accountability and foster democratic participation; this amendment threatens to reverse those gains by prioritizing administrative convenience over the public right to know. Ultimately, the approval signals a regression in digital governance standards, where the balance tips toward secrecy rather than openness. The narrative highlights the tension between political narratives of "balanced procedure" and the practical reality of eroded civil liberties. For the open data community, this case serves as a stark reminder that legislative adjustments can rapidly degrade institutional transparency, necessitating vigilant advocacy to ensure that data policies truly empower citizens rather than serving as tools for obfuscation.
Source: eldiariony.comPublished on 2025-10-16
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