The diary (or schedule) of a public figure is a unique and central information item in the web of public information.
Although it is sometimes presented as "technical" information, it has a deeper and more central importance and meaning than that.
The diaries managed by and for public officials belong to the first core circle of public information.
They centralize information relevant to understanding many key processes, events and matters related to the work of the various authorities and are a first-rate analysis, control and understanding tool in regards to matters of public interest, including policy issues, its design and implementation, the order of priorities in the authority's work, locating issues that are not addressed and a comparative examination of treatment on similar or identical issues by different authorities and with different positions that these issues are under their responsibility (whether in the same authority or in different or parallel authorities).
Constant examination and follow-up of the diary entries allow researchers, journalists and the general public to examine the manner in which the official allocates his time resources, the issues handled by him and those that are not handled, the priorities applied by him to handle the issues under his responsibility, the degree of appropriateness of a person's actions The public and the Authority for promises and representations given by the Authority or by those entrusted with it previously and the degree of appropriateness in the actions of the officials within the Authority and between different authorities (also on the comparative level between authorities charged with handling similar issues (such as in local government for example) and whether regarding the handling of authorities which handle different aspects of responsibility of the same matter, this also over long periods of time in a way that allows long-term phenomena and processes to be mapped.
The diary records also allow for tracking irregularities and irregularities arising from it in various aspects, starting with defects in moral purity, through damage to equality and the distribution of public attention, to the extent of the efficiency and diligence of the office holder in relation to the scope of his job and the areas under his responsibility and the time he devotes to handling other matters (party-political, personal , social and others, which do not directly relate to his position within the authority in which his diary is conducted).
Examining the diary together with other core information details, the publication of which is also sometimes initiated (such as arrangements to prevent conflicts of interest), can lead to the discovery of meetings and issues in which an official is involved, despite the motives he has for the Kaorit regarding them.
It is an effective control tool, which has a proper purpose and deserves to be strengthened.
All of these not only testify to the importance of delivering and disclosing the information stored in the diaries continuously and frequently and as proactively and uniformly as possible, but also to the importance inherent in the orderly and careful management of the diary entries in real time, under uniform standards as far as possible applicable to the various authorities and the various officials in the same The way, but with the necessary adjustments.
Therefore, the need to establish a binding guideline regarding the management of the diary entries itself, the manner of registration, the details to be included in the diary and the manner of their registration and detailing, and so on, becomes more acute.
These will even facilitate the classification and examination in real time of the information included in the diary and its adaptation in a more successful and efficient manner (while saving a lot of resources and trying to invest them retrospectively) for delivery.
In this manner of operation, it is also necessary to facilitate and encourage the disclosure of the diary on a regular and periodic basis in a proactive manner.
The struggles over the diaries of public figures were not easy and continue to this day.
It took two petitions to get Netanyahu's diaries published, and others such as the mayor of Haifa, Yona Yahav, or the mayor of Kiryat Gat, Aviram Dehari, did not hand over their diaries in the meantime.
Other ministers simply ignored the requests or delayed them and petitions were required to expedite the delivery.
These judgments made it clear to the owners of the diaries that they would not be able to avoid the delivery of the diaries, but did not create a uniform atmosphere or practice regarding their delivery.
For these and other reasons, the Ministry of Justice believed that the method of publishing the diaries should be anchored in a binding procedure.
Not only was it decided on a procedure that would help make them accessible and apply to government ministries and trust units, the Legal Adviser to the Government claimed not long ago in the Supreme Court, regarding the diary of a senior member of the Tel Aviv Municipality that Sakheha applied to receive his diary, that the procedures and guidelines should apply normatively to every authority regarding She.
This is the common sense that also led her predecessors and the current consultant to proactively publish their diary.
However, these things are not enough and care must be taken to implement the instructions of the procedure even when diaries are accessed proactively.
Do not create different standards for delivery - neither logically nor normatively.
It is fitting that whoever will lead this approach on behalf of the government, in my opinion they will see and do so, is precisely the legal advisor to the government who serves as an example of proper behavior.
Attorney Elad Man is the ombudsman of the "Success" association and an expert in information law
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