Established as a basic human right, the right to access information held by public bodies has been recognized not only in Human Rights Conventions but also mentioned in all three of the main Anti-Corruption Conventions.

In 1949, the United Nations passed a General Assembly resolution, known as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Article 19 sets out the right to freedom of expression as follows:

Later on, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (a binding legal treaty signed in 1966, entered into force in 1976) - guaranteed the right to freedom of opinion and expression, also in Article 19.

At a regional level, in Europe, Africa and the Americas, countries have adopted human rights treaties, all of which recognize the right to freedom of opinion and expression, including the right to seek, receive and impart information. The right to access information held by public bodies is a key piece of the wider right to freedom of opinion and expression. The treaties mentioned are:

• European Convention on Human Rights (ECRH)
• African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights
• American Convention on Human Rights.