When MID violates laws
The Ministry for Investment and Development acted illegally by refusing to provide the entrepreneur the required documents
At the request of the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs the Committee on Regulation of Natural Monopolies and Protection of Competition sent to the Ministry of Investment and Development an order to eliminate violations of the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the field of protection of competition.
The reason for appeal of NCE to the Committee on Regulation of Natural Monopolies and Protection of Competition with a request to conduct an antitrust investigation of MID RK was denial of the Ministry to present a number of documents adopted by MID RK to a business subject.
In its response the subject of entrepreneurship of MID RK explained that the requested acts are acts of individual application and are accepted for MID RK to implement its functions and powers, and they can’t be the subject of relationships, which are governed by the law of RK "Access to Information".
At the same time the explanation, given by the applicant to the General Prosecutor's Office, follows that, pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article 11 of the aforementioned law, the owner of the information shall, upon request of the user of information to provide any information, except for information with restricted access.
Such, in accordance with subparagraph 8) of Article 1 of the Law "On Access to Information" is information classified as state secrets, personal, family, medical, banking, commercial and other secrets protected by law, as well as service information with the comment "For Official Use Only" , explained at NCE.
"Paragraph 16 of Article 11 of the Law contains an exhaustive list of grounds on which access to the information can’t be granted. At the same time, despite the fact that the requested acts are acts of individual application, they were given to another business entity, which means that these acts do not contain information with restricted access", noted experts of NCE.
MID RK, in response to a letter of NCE RK refused to provide documents requested by the applicant, pointing out that these acts are transferred to another business entity on the basis of signed contract of non-commercial cooperation, as well as re-stated that these acts are acts of individual application.
Experts of NCE believe that granting of legal acts to one business entity, including on the basis of a civil contract, and the refusal to grant access to those acts for other businesses, refers to anti-competitive activities in accordance with Article 194 of the Entrepreneurial Code of RK.
The National Chamber addressed to the Committee on Regulation of Natural Monopolies and Protection of Competition with the request to conduct an antitrust investigation against MID RK.
On 29th of December 2016 the antitrust authority has replied that according to the results of the investigation, there was established that MID RK violated sub-clause 9) of clause 2 of Article 194 of the Entrepreneurial Code of RK (anticompetitive actions of the state authority, expressed in the provision of privileges to separate market entities or other benefits that put them in a privileged position relative to competitors, or the creation of unfavorable or discriminatory conditions in comparison with competitors activities).
Antitrust Authority sent to the Ministry of Investment and Development an order to eliminate violations of the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the field of protection of competition.
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