The list of 75 spokespersons from 62 central government departments that have launched a regular news release mechanism, made public by the State Council Information Office on Tuesday, is supposed to offer one more route of access to government information.

China now has 20 of its local provincial-level governments appointing their own official spokespersons.

A regular communication channel between the government and public is conducive to an efficient flow of information and shows respect for people's right to know.

It is in the interests of the public, who can get easier access to what they want to know through the media.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs pioneered such a system in 1983. The ensuing two decades have seen the country not only achieve a prosperous economy, but also make great strides in constructing a more open and transparent government.

The government has utilized various channels, such as the powerful Internet, to give timely explanations on its policies and get feedback. Now the public have been able to get their voices heard more conveniently and had more say in the decision-making process.

The spokesperson system is an important part of the increased interaction between the government and the public. That the government is spreading the system to more departments and regions is vital to standardizing information release.

In the past, not all government departments and officials were willing to exchange information with the public in an open manner. When a major social event or accident happened, some of them feared direct disclosure would lead to public panic and affect social stability.

But without a public channel to release the information, the public simply get more scared.

The SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) incident last year is a case in point. The lack of official information brewed rumours and panic. As the government started to tell the public what was really happening, people gradually calmed down.

A lack of transparency is a hotbed for gossip. What scares the public is not honest release of information, but rumour.

With a spokesperson mechanism in place, the government and the public will feel more at ease, especially in the face of major social events.

As a new arrangement, the mechanism is subject to finetuning to make it more effective. Spokespersons are encouraged to avoid using "no comment" to dodge questions.

Improvements in technical details are welcome, but in the meantime, systematic factors should be taken into consideration to make the arrangement play its role better in effective information release.

Detailed regulations are needed to ensure the mechanism is successful.

What also needs to be clarified is that with spokespersons in place, other officials are not automatically exempted from answering questions from the public.

The spokesperson system should be a weapon to promote people's right to know, not a shield that serves tight-lipped officials.

(China Daily December 30, 2004)