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UN Secretary General message on World Press Freedom Day

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  • UN Secretary General message on World Press Freedom Day

    UN SECRETARY-GENERAL MESSAGE ON WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY

    A1plus
    | 12:58:43 | 03-05-2005 | Politics |

    Journalists work on the front-lines of history, unravelling the
    tangle of events, giving them shape and giving us a narrative sense
    of our lives. Their tools are words and images; their credo is free
    expression; and their efforts empower all of us, individuals and
    societies alike.

    Yet for doing this indispensable work, many journalists are persecuted,
    attacked, imprisoned and murdered. According to the Committee to
    Protect Journalists, 56 journalists were killed in the line of duty
    in 2004. Another 19 remain missing and are feared to be dead, and
    some 124 were imprisoned.

    On World Press Freedom Day, therefore, we pay tribute to those who have
    fallen victim to the perils of their calling. We salute the courage
    and dedication of journalists struggling against risk and outright
    brutality to exercise their right to seek and tell the truth. And
    we remind Governments especially that the right to "seek, receive
    and impart information and ideas through any media" is enshrined in
    article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Censorship,
    the suppression of information, intimidation and interference are a
    denial of democracy, an obstacle to development, and a threat to the
    security of all.

    World Press Freedom Day is also a day to reflect upon the role of
    the media in general. In conjunction with this year's observance,
    the United Nations Department of Public Information is convening the
    third seminar in its "Unlearning Intolerance" series (following
    earlier sessions on anti-Semitism and Islamophobia), which will focus
    on "hate media". In Rwanda, Cote d'Ivoire and other places, the
    world has seen fanatical groups fill radio airwaves and television
    screens with incendiary messages designed to incite. The seminar
    will examine how the media can protect against fanning the flames of
    racism and xenophobia, and instead promote tolerance and understanding.

    My recent report, "In Larger Freedom", sets out wide-ranging
    proposals for reforming and revitalizing the multilateral system
    and the United Nations itself, and calls for bold decisions by world
    leaders at the Summit they will hold in New York in September. Press
    freedom will continue to play a central role in enlarging freedom
    for all. On this World Press Freedom Day, let us today reaffirm
    our commitment to this essential human right, and to pursue -- and
    collectively fulfil -- its realization.
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