YEREVAN, OCTOBER 2, NOYAN TAPAN. Charentsavan Mayor's Office was recognized the most transparently working department in the 2007 Information Freedom Competition held for already the fifth time by the Center for Freedom of Information on the International Information Day, September 28. The Center for Freedom of Information also gave the symbol of publicity, a key, to Yerevan Mayor's Office for introducing the best electronic system of providing information. Gyumri's Asparez journalist club received the prize instituted by the organization for exercising the right On Freedom of Information most actively and best of all: the organization had submitted 9 lawsuits on problems of freedom of information to the court, 8 out of which were sustained, another 30 lawsuits are being prepared. Angela Stepanian, a journalist of Armavir's ALT TV company, received a prize for consistent coverage of problems of freedom of information. Armavir's Mayor's Office was recognized the most closed self-government body in Armenia. A rusty lock as a symbol of secrecy will be sent to it. The competition had been organized with the assistance of the OSCE Yerevan Office. According to Mark Boyanich, the Head of the Office, ensuring of freedom of information is necessary from point of view of transparency of state bodies' work and growth of citizens' confidence to them. RA Ombudsperson Armen Haroutiunian was present at the event. He expressed readiness to continue cooperating with the Center for Freedom of Information. In his interview to Noyan Tapan correspondent Shushan Doydoyan, the Head of the Center, said that there are many cases when no information is provided to a citizen due to lack of the established order of providing information. "It comes that person's right to receive information depends on some sublegislative act, which is illegal, but gives officials an occasion to speculate on the lack of order." In consideration of the circumstance that the RA Ombudsperson has applied to the RA Prime Minister with the request to establish the order of providing information, S. Doydoyan said that the problem will be solved in the nearest future.

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