[WSIS CS-Plenary] Response to Jean-Pierre Pinet on document

[Sally Burch - ALAI]

In reply to Jean-Pierre Pinet  

Thanks for commenting on the text.  Obviously in a text that is 
trying to be as short as possible some things are not developed as 
fully as they might be; we could only underline a few key issues 
that are not in the draft documents, or are inadequately expressed. 
 

>- Information Society must not only respect article 19 of Human >Rights Declaration but the whole Declaration. Not only principles >but all the actions must be in this cadre. When you take only one >article, the poorest are always the looser.  

>see: "An information and communication society that has people >and human needs at its centre implies underlining the importance >of human rights standards as the core set of principles guiding its >development"  

You are right, of course.  But the first article of the WSIS draft 
declaration already refers to the UDHR and article 10 says:  

"The essential requirements for development of an equitable 
information society include: The respect for all internationally 
recognized human rights and fundamental freedoms.  Notably the 
right to freedom of opinion and expression, including the right to 
hold opinions without interference and seek to receive and impart 
information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers 
in accordance with article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human 
Rights and to unhindered access by individuals to communication 
and media information sources".  

The phrase in our priorities document was taken, precisely, from 
the Human Rights caucus document, refering to the fat that it in 
not sufficient to be "in accordance with article 19...", but to insist 
that we need to go further and ensure the conditions for freedom of 
information and expression to be truly in force.  

May be to make this clearer we could change the phrase to:  

"the WSIS Declaration should therefore NOT ONLY REAFFIRM 
Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), 
but commit to its active enforcement."  

>- It is a little simple to just reafirm the solidarity between richer 
>and poorer areas of the world (why not between the rich and the 
>poor ?). But poorest people want now acts. With Internet Society, 
>we have now more skills to fight poverty. My organisation think 
>that I.S. have to take real commitments to be credible to the 
>eyes of the poorest.  

>"Development cooperation in the area of sustainable development 
>should reaffirm the principle of solidarity between richer and 
>poorer areas of the world."  

Yes, but the point of including this is an allusion to the implicit 
understanding among most Northern governments that 
"development" is now a taboo word in the UN (because it implies 
transferring public resources from North to South); and that it is 
only acceptable to talk about "multistakeholder agreements" (ie. 
The private sector puts up the money for development initiatives, 
and expects to make a profit out of it).  If you can suggest a clearer 
way of stating this then please suggest it.  Your point is also 
important but addresses a different issue and might dilute this idea. 

>- we agree to this :"The Declaration should include, as a principle 
>and theme, the maintenance and growth of the commonwealth of 
>human knowledge as a means of reducing global inequality and of 
>providing the conditions for intellectual creativity, sustainable 
>development and respect for human rights" but sharing knowledge 
>is a commitment, specialy when you will share it with the poorest 
>AND receive from them their own knowledge.  

Can you suggest specific language to include this idea?  

Sally Burch  


---------------------------------
Sally Burch - Directora Ejecutiva
Agencia Latinoamericana de Información - ALAI
Casilla 17-12-877, Quito, Ecuador
sburch at alainet.org      http://alainet.org
Tel: (593 2) 250 5074  222 1570  Fax: (593 2) 250 5073