PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic (January 29, 2003)—The Inter American Press
Association (IAPA) today expressed appreciation to a number of governments in
the Western Hemisphere for the support they gave for the inclusion of the principles
of press freedom and free speech in the Declaration of Bávaro, a document
to be issued this Friday at the conclusion of a preparatory conference here for
the World Summit on the Information Society.
IAPA President Andrés García, after reviewing the first day of
conference sessions, declared that the IAPA is delighted that a number of governments
of nations in the Americas have agreed that the principles of freedom of expression
and of the press and the role that the privately-owned news media play are fundamental
of the Information Society. The objective of the World Summit on the Information
Society, sponsored by the United Nations through its International Telecommunications
Union, is to draw up a plan of action to improve the flow of information, narrow
the knowledge gap in the digital era and bring about a better understanding
of the technological revolution, in line with the concept that the world is
undergoing transformation of the industrial society into the information society.
Representatives of Argentina, Barbados, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Peru,
Trinidad and Tobago, United States and Uruguay were those who stressed that
unfettered respect for press freedom and free speech should be mentioned prominently
in the final declaration or conclusions that the preparatory conference issues.
Argentina’s position was that privately-owned, independent media are
a major prerequisite for the Information Society and that broadcast frequencies
should be subject to law. It said that the Information Society should incorporate
Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Declaration
of Chapleted, a document setting out 10 principles of freedom of expression
and of the press. El Salvador expressed the need for independent and free media
for democracy to be enjoyed in full.
The United States emphasized that “the free flow of information and freedom
of expression are key elements for the Information Society.” Chile, Costa
Rica and Uruguay declared freedom of expression and of opinion to be fundamental
elements of international treaties on human rights that should be incorporated
into the Information Society.
The IAPA, together with the International Association of Broadcasting (IAB),
held that within the principles of the World Summit on the Information Society
there is the “need to fully respect the principles of freedom of the press
and information, as recognized in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of
the Rights of Man and the Declaration of Chapultepec, endorsed by the overwhelming
majority of the governments of the Americas, as well as observance of legal
requirements.”
In a joint declaration titled “Independent Media in a Democratic Society”
the two organizations refer to specific points that they are submitting for
consideration by this preparatory conference, which winds up on January 31 and
in which are participating representatives of Western Hemisphere governments,
civil society and non-governmental organizations. The conference will draft
proposals from the region for the World Summit, to be held in December this
year in Geneva, Switzerland, and in 2005 in Tunis, Tunisia.
The IAPA international delegation is headed by President Andrés García
and Information Society Committee Chairman Saturnino Herrero Mitjans and is
also made up of Andrés García Lavín, Novedades de Mérida,
Mexico; Rafael Molina, Ahora, Dominican Republic; Alejo Miró Quesada
Cisneros, El Comercio, Peru; Bartolomé Mitre, La Nación, Argentina;
Ruddy González, El Expreso, and Miguel Antonio Franjul, Listín
Diario, both Dominican Republic; Carlos Salinas, El Diario de Coahuila, Mexico,
and Press Freedom Coordinator Ricardo Trotti.
The joint declaration states the following:
1) “The need to fully respect the principles of Freedom of Expression
and Information, as recognized in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of
the Rights of Man and Article 10 of the 1997 UNESCO Sofia Declaration, ratified
by that organization’s General Conference that same year, as well as the
Declaration of Chapultepec, endorsed by an overwhelming majority of the governments
of the Americas.”
2) “The need to recognize Freedom of Expression and of the Press as a
strategic institutional freedom, a mainstay for the existence of democratic
order in contemporary society, as well as the fact that it is essential for
there to be a full State of Law and for respect for and strengthening of the
people’s freedoms, that the lack of full Freedom of Expression amounts
to a formula empty of content.”
3) “The need for recognition that subjecting any initiative to the basic
principle of legality, with full respect for laws and regulations governing
the administration of broadcast frequencies, is the only way of guaranteeing
the effective and orderly use of the possibilities offered by the new and old
technologies.”
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