[governance] Re: [IRP] Declaration of the Assembly on the Right to Communication, Dakar- Feb 11, 2011

Thu Mar 3 17:29:57 EST 2011

Bonjour Anriette and Parminder
hi members of the list

I thank Anriette for her info and endorse the Declaration of Dakar on behalf of CSDPTT. My thanks also to Parminder who suggests a way for counter the dominant discourse in the IG process. But, as I mentioned during both WSIS Forum preparation meetings held in Geneva, the neoliberal discourse which monopolizes the WSIS discussion space needs also to be balanced (if not countered) by alternative voices. In my opinion these voices are present i.a. in the World Social Forum, and -as far as developing countries are concerned- especially in its African edition in Dakar. 

I would just recall the discourse we, the CS at WSIS, heard during the Geneva Summit, which told us that only the CS "inside" (Geneva's Palexpo premises) is worthy of the name and to be listened to, since the CS "outside" is diqualifying itself by demonstrating "loudly" in the city of Geneva. And there were only a handful of CS representatives -I's among them- who protested to Adama Samassekou, the author of this discrininating sentence. 

In fact, i'm fed up with this unilateral, dominant neoliberal discourse we are submitted to since the very beginning of WSIS, and with those shows such as Negroponte's, Wade's and even the represntatives of UN agencies ones, the most zealous of them being the ITU. That's why I do hope that during the coming WSIS Forum there will be another breeze blowing in the sails of WSIS. Isn't the ITU seriously questioning why the media don't mention its global and world-unique event ? I'd like to suggest them to invite Aminata Traoré and change its techno-liberal anthem for a more committed one. There are a lot of people in Africa and elsewhere, singing (fairly well) that another world is possible !  

Best regards

Jean-Louis Fullsack
CSDPTT    

> Message du 03/03/11 11:10
> De : "parminder" 
> A : "governance at lists.cpsr.org" , "irp at lists.internetrightsandprinciples.org >> "irp at lists.internetrightsandprinciples.org"" 
> Copie à : 
> Objet : [governance] Re: [IRP] Declaration of the Assembly on the Right to Communication, Dakar- Feb 11, 2011
> 
>  
> 
> On Wednesday 02 March 2011 06:58 PM, Anriette Esterhuysen wrote: Hi all One of APC's members was instrumental in developing this. Have a look, and endorse if you want to.. and I am sure people with critical comments too. 
> Hi Anriette
> 
> We endorse the declaration. We think that taking the right to communicate as a point of departure for developing a civil society vision for Internet Governance, and then translating into real policy and action priorities was perhaps a missed opportunity during and after the WSIS. We still think that even now CS groups should  take up this task  seriously, rather than just respond to the dominant discourse of IG in a one-off, splintered manner. I propose that interested actors join together into an informal group to try this. The world needs a vision of IG that is other than a statist, corporatist or technocratic one, and IG space today is ruled by various combinations of these approaches. Civil society just responds and/ or aligns temporarily with these different combinations. It will be very useful if we can ourselves offer a coherent progressive vision, and then do advocacy and make necessary alignments proceeding from this vision. In fact there are many actors in non-civil society spaces that will be happy to have a coherent alternative vision and help in propagating it. 
> 
> Parminder
> 
> Best Anriette ------------------------------ The right to inform and be informed Wednesday 23 February 2011 http://www.ciranda.net/fsm-dacar-2011/article/the-right-to-inform-and-be Declaration of the Assembly on the Right to Communication, Dakar - February 11, 2011 We, actors in the field of alternative information as well as citizen activists who use communication as a tool for social transformation: Note that, in a global context: - information is held in a stranglehold by political, economic and industrial forces and is manipulated by the governments and States; - freedom of expression is being denied, thwarted or repressed; - there is little or no guarantee for an unfettered access to information for all citizens; - a violent repression is unleashed upon citizens and actors in the field of information; - information is being commodified and standardized; - there is an increasing distrust by public opinion regarding information conveyed by the mainstream media. We also note, particularly in Africa: - an almost total absence of laws favouring citizens access to information; - freedom of expression and freedom of the press being undermined by repressive laws; - hindrances and restrictions, if not outright censorship, placed upon communities who wish to establish community media. At the same time, we see new perspectives opening up, in the face of this disturbing situation: - a greater awareness and ability by citizens to participate in the production and circulation of information in order to promote social justice; - the emergence of alternative media and the stepping unto the stage of citizens who contribute to social and political change, as evidenced by recent events in Tunisia and Egypt. We declare that the right to communicate is a fundamental right and a common good of humanity. We commit ourselves to: - defend, support and promote all initiatives that ensure and extend the right to communication and information as a fundamental human right; - building advocacy for a legislative and regulatory framework for public, alternative and community media, including ensuring among others a better right to airwave-access and broadcasting options; - recognize and protect the actors and activists involved in information and communication around the world; - create and strengthen synergies between all actors and activists working towards social transformation; - promote accessibility and popular ownership/mastery of media and information/communication technology by all citizens, without restriction of gender, class or origin; - promote mechanisms for ongoing communication between the various actors, participants and organizers of social forums, including the "extended" Social Forum as well as the various experiences of shared communication. - support the development and strengthening of community and alternative media; - combat censorship and guarantee freedom of expression on the Internet; - work towards the elaboration of a model that ensures the viability, sustainability and independence of the alternative media; - give a central place to issues of communication rights in the thematic spaces of social forums. Action Plan: - Center our information campaigns and awareness-raising activities on key issues that are on the international agenda (Rio+20, G8, G20, Palestine Forum, Durban, etc.). - Organize a World Forum of Free and Alternative Media in 2012, as part of the WSF process. As actors of communication, we clearly state our support for the Tunisian and Egyptian peoples, we call on their governments to lift censorship and to stop the repression against all citizens and actors in the field of information. We also call on all actors of social change and to unite our forces in the struggle for the right to information and communication, without which no change is possible. Participating organizations: * Abong (Brasilian association of NGOs) - Brasil * Action Jeunesse - Morrocco * African Klomeo renaissance - Nigeria * AK-Project France-Sénégal * Alai - Agência Latinoamericana de Información - Ecuador * Alba TV Venezuela * Alternatives Canadá * Amarc World association of community radios * Aphad - Senegal * Arcoiris TV - Italy * Babels * Berlin Carré - Germany * Caritas - France * CIC Bata - Spain * Caritas (France) * CIC Bata (Espagne) * Cdtm72 (France) * Cedidelp (France)v * Ciranda International - Shared Communication * International Commons strategies group - Germany * Citim (France) * Communautique - Canada * Editions Charles Léopold Mayer - France * e-Joussour - Morrocco * Federacion de sindicatos de periodistas - Spain * FocusPuller - Italy * Forum Alternatives Morrocco - FMAS * Fundacion Quepo - Spain * Giaba - Guinée Bissau * Guinée Culture - Guinea * HEKS - Senegal * Imersao Latina - Brazil * Intervozes - Brazil * IES News Service - Palestine * IPS (Inter Press Service) * KebethCache women resource center - Nigeria * Maison des citoyens du monde (France) * Maison des droits de lhomme (France) * Maison du Monde dEvry (France) * May first / People link - USA * Mission for Youth - Uganda * NIGD - Network Institute for Global Democratization - Finland * Pambazuka (Afrique) * Queens Magazine - Nigeria * Revista Forum - Brasil * Ritimo - France * Rural Health women Day - Nigeria * Saharareporters.com - Nigeria * Social Watch - Italy * Solafrika * Soylocoporti - Brasil * Support Initiative For sustainable development - Nigeria * Survie - France * TIE - Brasil * TV Star - Senegal * UnisCité - France * UPO - Spain * Vecam - France * WarriorsSelf-Help group - Kenya * WSFTV - WSF Forum TV Contacts: Info_fsmdakar at ritimo.org Translated from French by Grégoire Seither / Babels ======================================= APC Forum is a meeting place for the APC community - people and institutions who are or have been involved in collaboration with APC, and share the APC vision - a world in which all people have easy, equal and affordable access to the creative potential of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to improve their lives and create more democratic and egalitarian societies. _______________________________________________ apc.forum mailing list apc.forum at lists.apc.org http://lists.apc.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/apc.forum _______________________________________________ IRP mailing list IRP at lists.internetrightsandprinciples.org http://lists.internetrightsandprinciples.org/listinfo.cgi/irp-internetrightsandprinciples.org 
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