No Democratic Society cannot
Exist without Independent Pluralistic Press, Secretary-General Kofi
Annan told an observance of World Press Freedom Day in the General
Assembly Hall this morning. Media representatives and journalists from
around the world participated in the observance, which was moderated by
Assistant Secretary-General for Public Information, Samir Sanbar.
The Secretary-General said that some 50 years after the
proclamation by the General Assembly of the right to information in
Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, information
technology had made it much harder to suppress the free flow of
information. But, continuing assaults on the freedom of the press still
undermined the goals of the United Nations Charter.
The President of the General Assembly, Razali Ismail (Malaysia),
said an independent press should be free of both governmental, political
and economic control. The media was often used by financial moguls to
influence public and political opinion, even in distant lands, and
market forces risked marginalizing education, science and culture to the
"gods of commercialism". The lack of cultural and linguistic variation
on the Internet and in other media was of concern, he added.
The Anchor and Managing Editor of the CBS Evening News, Dan
Rather, said that the job of a reporter was to bear witness. Many
journalists around the world were still beaten and killed. Their
equipment was still seized and their families were still threatened. In
such circumstances, the need to report freely only became more
imperative.
Raghida Dergham, Chief Diplomatic Correspondent of Al-Hayat
newspaper and President of the United Nations Correspondents
Association, said that in both the developing and the developed world,
press freedom was elusive. In the west, the media had displayed a great
deal of independence. But, in reality, it was often corrupted by media
monopolies, egos, pre-packaged coverage and "spin doctors".
Ariel Dorfman, Chilean novelist and playwright, said "somewhere
in the world today, a journalist is being beaten. Somewhere in the world
today, another is being thrown into jail". Many delegates to the General
Assembly represented governments that routinely violated the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, he said.
Video presentations were also made by the Director-General of the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO),
Federico Mayor; Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa; Christine
Ockrent of France 3 television; and Justice P.B. Sawant, Chairman of the
Press Council of India.
Statements:
The President of the General Assembly, RAZALI ISMAIL (Malaysia), said
freedom of the press was a key and indivisible part of the freedom of
expression. An independent, pluralistic and free press was essential for
the development and strengthening of democracy within and between
nations, and to nurture equitable and sustainable socio-economic
development. An "independent press" meant one that was not only
independent from government, but from differing kinds of subtle
political and economic control. A "pluralistic press" required the end
of monopolies that threatened the existence of the greatest possible
number of newspapers, magazines and other media, reflecting the widest
possible range of opinions. A free press was not totally free.
Accompanying rights and liberties were special duties and
responsibilities towards the public -- truth and objectivity, respect
for the rights and reputations of others, public order, public health
and to safeguard moral norms.
Incarceration, even torture, censorship, legal harassment and
restrictions of travel were still inflicted, he continued. Only when
people had access to facts, knowledge, information and opinions could
they make the informed choices. All States must be encouraged to provide
constitutional guarantees -- protected by due legal process and
supported by public opinion - - for freedom of expression, freedom of
the press for all forms of media, freedom of association and freedom for
media unions. Training and programmes for journalists and media
practitioners should be widely available.
He said the international community and the United Nations had a
responsibility to rededicate themselves to world press freedom in an era
of globalization, where the media had too often become an instrument in
the hands of those in power, rather than the independent guarantee of
freedom. The media was used as a powerful instrument by financial
moguls, who could use the press to influence public and political
opinion, even in distant lands. Many professionals bemoan the erosion of
public service broadcasting. The enormous potential of communications
technology for peace-building, democracy and development might be
eclipsed by the more pernicious aspects of a rapidly evolving technology
driven by a liberalizing market economy. Lack of access and poor
infrastructure meant that developing countries could be marginalized
even further. A poor country might have three telephone lines for every
100 people. In the United States, millions were connected to the
Internet and electronic pathways. Market forces also risked the
marginalization of education, science and culture to the gods of
commercialism and advertising. The lack of cultural and linguistic
variation on the Internet and in other media was a concern.
The restrictions to press independence and plurality by indirect
methods, such as financial control by corporate monopolies over media
networks, and interference with editorial content, radio and television
broadcasting, entertainment and current affairs programmes, were less
recognized he said. Systematic bias in comments that diverged knowingly
from the truth, whether for commercial, ideological or sensational
reasons, had enormous ramifications. Such bias in the presentation of
current affairs was a subversive attack on a basic principle of news.
The United Nations itself suffered from changing news values. The most
respectable papers in the United States did not find it appropriate or
necessary to cover the critical debates on global issues in the United
Nations. Perhaps even more damaging was the manipulation of ideas for
political purposes, so that ideas became weapons for one's political or
commercial allies. Programmers, journalists and correspondents were
compelled to lower standards to chase ratings by offering entertainment
in place of news.
Secretary-General KOFI ANNAN said that no democratic society
could exist without a free, independent and pluralistic press. The work
of those who shared information and ideas was more than a profession. It
was a calling, a mission and a sacred imperative. The idea for World
Press Freedom Day had originated in 1993 at a historic seminar in
Santiago, Chile -- the third of four seminars on freedom of the press
sponsored by the United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI)
and UNESCO.
Some 50 years after the proclamation by the General Assembly of the
right to information in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, the revolution in communications technology, from satellites to
e-mail to the Internet, had made it much harder to suppress the free
flow of information, he said. The communications revolution had widened
the gap between developed and developing countries. The international
community should respond by providing training and technical assistance,
so that developing countries could also reap the benefits of the new
technologies.
Developing countries, for their part, should strengthen their
national media organizations, the Secretary-General continued.
Governments should commit to freedom of the press, as that freedom was
the key to strong media establishments in developed and developing
countries alike. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, last
year a record 185 journalists were imprisoned in 24 countries.
Twenty-six had been murdered outright in the line of duty -- the
bloodiest aspect of a worldwide toll of nearly 1,000 documented episodes
of censorship, legal harassment and physical assault. Assaults on
freedom of the press undermined the goals of the United Nations Charter,
including the development and maintenance of democracy. Unless a
vigilant press was free to shed light on matters affecting the
well-being of every society, global problems would be immeasurably
harder to solve.
Journalists today were playing an important role in "preventive
journalism", he said, not waiting for blood to start flowing to find
dramatic stories and images. Still, more could be done. He encouraged
journalists to "examine people's daily struggles for work, education and
dignity". They would find there courage and grand forces at work that
would inspire audiences.
Over two centuries ago, the Secretary-General said, Thomas
Jefferson had concluded that there was no alternative to a free press.
His view remained self-evident. "The basis of our government being the
opinion of the people", he had written in 1787, "the very first object
should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether
we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a
government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter". Today,
the international community paid tribute to those whose sacrifices and
persistent effort made a free press an international commitment.
DAN RATHER, Anchor and Managing Editor of CBS Evening News, said
that the General Assembly should celebrate the emergence of every State
from the darkness of censorship and into the light of free expression.
He was proud of the American ideal of a free press. The global idea of
press freedom was both shared and certified by the United Nations in the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Article 19 of that "marvelously
inclusive" document had established the right of everyone to receive
information without regard to frontiers. He hoped that everyone would
agree that the "sweeping promise" of Article 19 should be a universal
goal of all nations.
The exercise of freedom required the exercise of responsibility by
citizens, and of patience by political leaders, he said. While a free
press had its risks, history showed that censorship was unjust. Yet,
despite reason and morality, censorship persisted. The job of a reporter
was to bear witness. Many journalists around the world were beaten and
killed, their equipment was seized and their families were threatened.
But in such circumstances, the need to report freely only became more
imperative. History made clear that freedom always prevailed.
He said technology today defied many of the old means of censorship. On
the Internet, censorship was both impractical and impossible. The ideal
of worldwide freedom of the press remained only an ideal, but it was not
impossible. The General Assembly was dedicated to world peace, but world
peace had never been completely attained. But, that fact did not deter
nations from joining the Assembly.
RAGHIDA DERGHAM, Senior Diplomatic Correspondent for Al-Hayat and
President of the United Nations Correspondents Association, said that
world press freedom would remain an elusive goal so long as journalists
were intimidated by threats and coercion. In both the developing and the
developed world, a free press was elusive. In the West, the media had
displayed a great deal of independence. But in reality, the media was
controlled by new forces, ranging from media monopolies, egos,
pre-packaged coverage and "spin doctors". Western governments had often
carried out disinformation campaigns. The media itself had failed on
more than one occasion. Often the media was afraid to go against
government or popular opinion. A small newspaper in the Middle East, for
example, had broken the Iran-Contra scandal, while the western media
"slept".
In much of the world, the media was perceived as either a tool of
government or opposition, she said. Many governments attributed
criticism of press controls to "bashing". A free and independent press
was a reflection of the wisdom of governments that were willing to be
criticized. Censorship today was not merely governmental. Often, it was
carried out in the name of national security or commerce. The media
should be engaged in a partnership for conflict prevention. Media,
governments, non-governmental organizations, regional and international
organizations should stand together against the intimidation of
journalists.
ARIEL DORFMAN, Chilean novelist and playwright, said "somewhere
in the world today, a journalist is being beaten. Somewhere in the world
today, another is being thrown into jail". Many delegates to the General
Assembly represented governments that routinely violated the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. He had, this morning, left a list of 141
nations that had violated press freedom in only the past 12 months. If
there was so much repression of the media, governments must feel
threatened by the stories being told.
The concentration of ownership of the means of expression was an
insidious form of control, he continued. Journalists often had to figure
out how to tell their stories over the objection of those who placed
profits over truth. A free press, with many dissonant voices, could only
exist if millions of people participated by responding with their
voices. Somewhere in the world today a marketing executive of a media
corporation was cancelling a story or a show because it was too
controversial. Intolerance always diminished liberty. There would be no
press freedom in the world until everyone respected the right of other
people to be different. Symbols matter. World Press Freedom Day was such
a symbol, he said.
Presentations on Videotape:
FEDERICO MAYOR, Director-General of the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said there
had been both advances and setbacks to press freedom in the last 12
months. Press freedom violations had increased in 1995 and there had
been alarming violence against the press by criminal groups. Some
governments also threatened press freedom. But, there had also been
spontaneous demonstrations for freedom by people. Any diminution of
press freedom was a diminution of democracy and UNESCO would continue to
work towards ensuring that freedom.
ARCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU, of South Africa, said those in
power, even in democracies, were often tempted to interfere with press
freedom. All democracies -- even the strongest -- must be kept on their
toes by the monitoring that was carried out by a free press. All
governments found it was easier to avoid scrutiny and not to be
accountable.
CHRISTINE OCKRENT, Producer and Anchor of current affairs
programmes for France 3 TV, said freedom of the press was as important
and vital as the air. In too many countries there were many situations
where the only information available to people was the official version
of events. Millions of people around the world were denied the right to
be informed. The international community needed to fight together, so
everyone had the right to free media.
P.B. SAWANT, Chairman of the Press Council of India, said
that people must have the right to be directly informed of all issues
and there must be an accountability by all those in authority. The press
was the best way to ensure that. The press must also constructively
criticize governments. There should be no obstruction to the free flow
of information to the press and from the press to the people.
Obstruction was both internal and external and came from governments,
social and political groups, terrorists and from management and
editorial staff. Often, financial houses and companies tried to
influence editorial staff.
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