Information and documents conundrum

I thought I would share this query from Brutus and response at Barbados Free Press.
Brutus wrote : Hallam, you make some interesting points but can you clarify what you mean by “information in the broader sense”? What information are you contemplating that is not covered by the term “documents”. Can you give examples?
My response:
The intention of the bill, as stated at page 3 Section (a), speaks to giving citizens the right and freedom to receive idea and information. Not all information is held in public documents. In fact, I am suggesting that there is a lot of information held by companies which affects the citizen and which the citizen should have access to. As a communications analyst I want information that can be used to (a) argue a case for a better deal for citizens and (b) recommend after additional analysis policies that government should consider to provide citizens with improved education, business opportunities, jobs, access to telecommunicatons etc.Information, as defined as information contained in public documents, is therefore limited and incomplete as far as the interests of citizens are concerned.Further, while the section on page 3 speaks of "information" nowhere in the same section are the words "documents" and "reports" mentioned. However, replete in other sections of the draft bill are references to "documents" but not "information". So I also see something of a conundrum in the intentions of the bill and what it actually would seek to legislate.There are many other aspects of the bill which appear either unclear, inadequate or potentially at conflict with other legisation, such as the confidentiality legislation which comes under the Telecommunications Act and the Utilities Regulation Act of the Fair Trading Commission. For example, if an item of information that cannot possibly be considered "confidential" is contained in a document which Cable & Wireless provides to the Fair Trading Commission with an understanding of non-disclosure and Brutus wanted to access that information which legislation would take precedence?My basic point though was that my preference would have been for access to information, not just public documents. Do we always have to import legislation as defined by other countries and intended for the citizens of those countries? A lot of the information of interest to me is financial or numbers such as how any people do not have telephone service, how many people in rural Barbados compared with urban Barbados have telephones, where exactly are there pockets of poverty and how is this defined, company information that is ill-defined whch might be useful to potential stock purchasers, data that shows the earnings of various unregulated telecommunication services which would more than likely put a lie to the view that domestic telephone service is propped up by international earnings, cost studies held by the Fair Trading Commission etc, etc.
Hallam
caritel@hallamhope.com
(246) 424-0894