In Belgium, Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) applies. This law guarantees freedom of speech, freedom of information, and press freedom. In the Belgian Constitution, freedom of information is also set out in Article 32. Flanders has expanded this law in its Open Government decree [Openbaarheid van bestuur].
Every completed document from a committee or board under the jurisdiction of the Flemish Government can be requested, and the board or committee is obliged to answer the request within 15 days. “Wobbing”, as it is called by Flemish journalists, is not common practice – only 16 per cent make use of this feature. Journalists indicated that the usefulness of the information is rather low, and the procedure for obtaining the documents also takes too long and is often impractical. Some journalists are annoyed that sensitive information is rarely released (Van Leuven et al., 2019).
Flemish journalists gain a press card after being officially acknowledged as professional journalists. This card gives them access to secured places and facilitates getting in contact with official authorities or private companies. It also comes with financial advantages like freely accessing events or reduced fares on public transportation.
