Technology and transparency

One of the most important priorities for Transparency International Strategy for 2015 is increasing public participation in anti-corruption and civic activities. Since 2010, TI Lithuania has been actively creating various internet tools to help citizens get involved in the decision making process and anti-corruption activities. We introduce you to these TI Lithuania tools:

www.stirna.info

„S.T.I.R.NA” – tai „Transparency International“ Lietuvos skyriaus iniciatyva, kuria siekiama paprastai ir patogiai pateikti informaciją apie žiniasklaidos priemonių savininkus. Duomenų bazėje teikiama informacija yra surinkta iš Kultūros ministerijos ir Lietuvos radijo ir televizijos komisijos turimų duomenų. S.T.I.R.NA – tai žodžių “spauda”, “televizija”, “internetas”, “radijas” ir “naujienų agentūros” akronimas.

www.atvirasteismas.lt

Iniciatyva „Atviras teismas” leis Lietuvos gyventojams lengvai suprasti, kaip dirba jų miesto teismai, ir greitai susipažinti su iki šiol neprieinamais teisėjų darbo rodikliais. Tokiu būdu siekiame praskaidrinti ir atverti visuomenei Lietuvos teismus, kuriuos didžioji dauguma gyventojų vis dar laiko korumpuotais. Naudojantis www.atvirasteismas.lt, gyventojai galės patys nagrinėti ir lyginti teismų ir teisėjų darbo krūvius, darbo stabilumą, vidutinę bylų nagrinėjimo trukmę, vidutinį darbo užmokestį, priimtų sprendimų skaičių ir kitus veiklos rodiklius. Tai vienas pirmųjų tokio pobūdžio projektų pasaulyje. Panašų projektą jau įgyvendino mūsų „Transparency International” kolegos Slovakijoje.

www.ParasykJiems.lt

Using this tool, you can enter an address to find out who the representatives in government (mayors, municipal representatives, members of national and the European parliament(s)) for the area are and send them a private or public letter. All public letters are visible to other visitors. The website also suggests how to use your civil rights to get information – a brochure for such purposes is available for download. The tool has been online since 2011.

www.SkaidrumoLinija.lt

Have you become aware of any corrupt activity? Have you been asked for a bribe? In this website you can find out what to do and how to report the activity. You can even ask for advice. The website aims to describe and mark the place of the corrupt activity on an interactive map, thus sharing it with others. You can also ask questions about corruption and bureaucracy – TI Lithuania and other experts will attempt to help you. The website has been online since the autumn of 2012.

www.ManoSeimas.lt

This tool allows you to take a survey containing the principal voting issues for Parliament during the 2008-2012 session. You will then be able to see which members of Parliament might vote similarly to you. This survey consists of 10 important issues selected by experts – in order to help you reach a decision, you can find arguments for and against each issue.

www.transparencyworks.lt

Transparency Works is a series of events aimed to create a community of internet transparency enthusiasts in Lithuania. This tool promotes discussions about the importance of access to open government data, transparency and government accountability.

The first Transparency Works event was held in March 2012. The event was organized by TI Lithuania along with representatives from Sunlight Foundation, who came to Lithuania to share their experiences in building e-democracy. Because this event was more informal than a conference, everyone was encourages to share their voice. Such world organizations like Sunlight Foundation, MySociety and others visited Lithuania and participated in this initiative. The presentations from the event can be found here.

The second event was part of the Transparency International hackathon – Hacks for Transparency. The event was held in October 2012. Similar events were held concurrently in Indonesia, Colombia, Morocco, Hungary and Russia. More than 40 programmers, designers and NGO representatives, including participants from Kenya, Georgia, Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia, Portugal, Germany, Italy and others, worked on different solutions for internet transparency. The presentations from the event can he found here.