TI BiH won the case against RTRS for failing to submit the list of its employees

The District Court in Banja Luka confirmed that the Radio and Television of the Republic of Srpska violated the Law on Free Access to Information, by refusing to submit to TI BiH the public procurement contracts and the list of its employees

Banja Luka, 22nd May 2017 – Transparency International in Bosnia and Herzegovina (TI BiH) won the case against the Radio and Television of the Republic of Srpska, after TI BiH had filed a lawsuit due to the violation of the Law on Free Access to Information.
In April 2016 TI BiH requested from RTRS to submit the public procurement contracts concluded in 2015, Job classification rulebook, and the list of all employees in this enterprise. RTRS refused to deliver these documents, violating thus the Law on Free Access to Information on several grounds, claiming primarily that the requested information could be found on the RTRS website, although it was found that the information was not available in this way, and making TI BiH disabled to file a complaint against such decision.
The Court confirmed the arguments of TI BiH and ordered RTRS to adopt a new act, according to the provisions of the Law, within 30 days.
This is not the first refusal of RTRS to submit information about its work and operations, although, as the public enterprise and public radio and television service, it is obliged to do so in accordance with the Law. In this case it shows again its extreme lack of transparency and responsibility towards the citizens who finance the work of this service. TI BiH would like to mention again that the information regarding fund expenditures of this company, as well as information about its employees, is of great public interest, especially in the context of the severe financial crisis that RTRS is going through and the large debts to its employees.

Press rls – 22.5.2017.e.