[WSIS CS-Plenary] US Gov WSIS press release?

[lissjeffrey at sympatico.ca]

Here is what we have:
Liss Jeffrey, PhD
Witness 2 Wsis 2
Canadian civil society Wsis team

http://wsis.ecommons.ca
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http://geneva.usmission.gov/Press2005/1118WSISFinal.html

U.S. DELEGATION TO WSIS
PRESS NOTE

Tunis, Tunisia
November 18, 2005

            As the second phase of the World Summit on the Information 
Society draws to a close, the U.S. delegation wishes to express its thanks 
to the Tunisian organizers and the Tunisian people for having succeeded in 
the considerable logistical challenges of hosting the event. The World 
Summit on the Information Society provided the world with an opportunity to 
discuss two vitally important issues – how to bring the benefits of 
information technology to the developing world and how to ensure a free flow 
of information that is critical to the success of the Internet.

            Internet stakeholders have underlined in both the official 
meetings and in parallel events during WSIS the critical necessity of an 
open dialogue between governments, private sector, and civil society 
representatives.  In hosting this Summit, the government of Tunisia had an 
opportunity and responsibility to demonstrate clearly its commitment to 
freedom of the press and its commitment to freedom of expression.  Indeed, 
in a statement by the Western European and others Group (WEOG), during the 
Geneva Prepcom in September 2005, Tunisia, as host of the Summit, was called 
upon to demonstrate that it strongly upholds and promotes the right to 
freedom of opinion and expression necessary to promote the building of the 
global information society and ensure a successful second phase of the World 
Summit.  We are therefore obliged to express our disappointment that the 
government of Tunisia did not take advantage of this important opportunity 
to demonstrate its commitment to freedom of expression and assembly in 
Tunisia. We hope that the successful outcome of the second phase of the 
World Summit on the Information Society in Tunisia will provide additional 
incentive to the government in Tunisia to match its considerable economic 
and social accomplishments with comparable progress in political reform and 
respect for the human rights of its people.