[Lac] RV: [wsis-gc] Re: [Ngowomen] Geneva update - statement from the communitymedia group

[Holanda Castro]

-----Mensaje original-----
De: mavic at isiswomen.org <mavic at isiswomen.org>
Para: ngowomen at genderit.org <ngowomen at genderit.org>
CC: WSIS Gender Caucus mailing list <wsis-gendercaucus at wougnet.org>
Fecha: martes, 16 de septiembre de 2003 7:22
Asunto: [wsis-gc] Re: [Ngowomen] Geneva update - statement from the
communitymedia group


>
>
>Dear all,
>
>I would like to share with you the statement of the community media group
for
>PrepCom 3.
>
>The statement addresses the following key issues on community media:
>
>- role of community media as stated in the declaration
>- commitment to community broadcasting in country level legislation
>- commitment to spectrum allocation for community broadcasting
>- establishment of an international Community Media Fund
>
>It's being circulated to solicit endorsements. You may send the messages of
>endorsement to me and I will collate and pass them on to the the community
>media group wherein Isis is also a member.
>
>Warm regards,
>
>Mavic
>
>*******************
>
>FINAL VERSION (open for endorsements, 11 September 2003)
>Community Media and the Information Society
>Statement on the draft Declaration and Action Plan
>
>A just and equitable information society strategy must be people-centred,
>inclusive, built on fundamental human rights and focused primarily on the
>reduction of poverty. Traditional and new means of communication must be
>focused on creating opportunities for people and communities to participate
>in shaping their own destiny.
>
>Much is promised by the information society - access to vital knowledge for
>health and education, better information from governments and corporations,
>electronic democracy, global trade and exchange, up to the minute news. But
>the world's poorest communities face the danger of being left out. The
>communication needs of poor people are compromised at the highest levels by
>a vastly unequal access to the global communications environment and by the
>absence of structural measures and commitments to redress past imbalances.
>
>Free and universal access to basic education and affordable access to
>electricity are required before the world's poorest people can benefit from
>new ICTs. Nearly one third of the world's population still do not have
>reliable access to electricity. Basic literacy skills are lacking for 20
>per cent of the world's population, especially women and girls. The most
>widespread and accessible communications technologies remain the
>traditional media, particularly radio - an oral medium, low cost and
>receivable by 90 per cent of the world's population. And the most effective
>approaches to poverty reduction are community-driven and empowerment
>oriented.
>
>Community media are thus a vital means to enable public participation, to
>strengthen cultural and linguistic diversity, to promote gender equity and
>to bring about a more just and equitable information society that includes
>the voices of the poor and the marginalised. We urge this be reflected in
>the WSIS Declaration and Action Plan.
>
>In particular, we are calling on government delegations to WSIS Prepcom 3
>to make the following improvements:
>
>In the draft Declaration
>- include reference to the specific and crucial role of community media
>
>In the draft Action Plan
>- strengthen commitment to community broadcasting in country level
>legislation
>- strengthen commitment to spectrum allocation for community broadcasting
>- support the establishment of an international Community Media Fund
>
>Comments and Proposals on the draft Declaration (version 18 July 2003)
>
>In the draft Declaration of Principles, paragraph 51 has not yet been
>adequately formulated to reflect the essential role of media in the
>provision of information and communication, nor does it reflect media
>diversity and the importance of public service broadcasting and community
>media. Freedom of expression is also worryingly compromised by phrases such
>as  "in accordance with the legal system in each country" which represent
>an unacceptable weakening to the provisions of Article 19 of the Universal
>Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
>
>The Declaration of Principles requires a much clearer statement on the
>media, based on respect for the provisions of Article 19 of the UDHR and
>recognising the importance of a diverse and pluralist media environment
>including public service broadcasting and community media. This would
>provide firmer foundations for the following series of points that we
>consider should be made as specific commitments in the WSIS Action Plan.
>
>Comments and Proposals on the draft Action Plan (version 22 August 2003)
>
>We warmly welcome paragraph 6b in the draft Action Plan:
>"6b) Public service broadcasting and community media have specific and
>crucial roles to play in ensuring the participation of all in the
>information society."
>
>We are also encouraged by commitments in paragraphs 27, 41 and 42 of the
>Action Plan:
>
>"27a) Governments should support a generous allocation of frequencies for
>local radio stations at affordable prices."
>"41f) Give recognition and support to media based in local communities and
>support projects combining the use of traditional media and new
>technologies."
>"42f) Encourage investment in regional and community-based media content as
>well as new technologies."
>
>Nevertheless we believe these statements can and should be strengthened.
>The statement in paragraph 6b) should be reflected in an improved
>Declaration of Principles and the commitments in the Action Plan need to be
>more specific and measurable.
>
>Country level legislation
>
>The major barrier to the development of community broadcasting services, is
>the country level legislative and regulatory framework. Many countries
>provide specific legislative and regulatory frameworks that encourage
>community broadcasters. Others retain legislative or regulatory systems
>that restrict freedom of expression by preventing or discouraging local
>communities from establishing their own community broadcasting services.
>
>The draft Action Plan sets specific targets for access to the information
>society including, for example, a commitment to Internet access in every
>village by 2010 and in every school by 2015. These commitments, if
>realised, would give the world's literate population access to global
>information resources and communications capacity. They need to be balanced
>by investment in the local communications infrastructure, recognising that
>for the poorest people radio will continue to be the dominant source of
>information.
>
>We propose the WSIS should set specific targets for the opening up of
>broadcast licensing to allow for the operation of community broadcasting
>services in every community by 2010 and to ensure all of the world's
>population can access community broadcasting services by 2015.
>
>Spectrum allocation
>
>The draft Action Plan recognises (paragraph 27a) the importance of access
>to spectrum for local radio services but it includes no specific targets
>nor does it address the importance of managing the radio spectrum in the
>public interest to ensure a diversity of services.
>
>The Action Plan should include an explicit commitment to ensure the
>radio-frequency spectrum is recognised as a natural resource belonging to
>all humanity and that should be managed in the public interest as a
>publicly owned asset through transparent and accountable regulatory
>frameworks. Regulation should ensure equitable access to spectrum among a
>plurality of media including sufficient capacity reserved for community
>media.
>
>We propose the WSIS should set specific targets for the reservation of
>spectrum to enable community broadcasting services in every community by
>2010.
>
>Community Media Fund
>
>The draft Action Plan proposes a global ICTs for Development Fund but
>leaves open how such a Fund would be deployed. There has been a strong
>focus in the WSIS draft Declaration and Action Plan on building the
>infrastructure, generally taken to mean the telecommunications
>infrastructure for local and international connectivity. Private sector
>infrastructure and content providers and some donor governments have a
>strong interest in promoting public investment in infrastructure
>particularly where this opens up new markets.
>
>This is unlikely to address the needs of the poorest, mainly rural
>communities, who face barriers of literacy, electricity supply and
>affordable consumer equipment. A substantial portion of any investment in
>ICTs for poverty reduction must be ring-fenced for community-driven
>development and community communications initiatives based on the
>principles of empowerment, inclusion, sustainability and appropriate
>technology.
>
>We propose the Action Plan should include a commitment to establish a
>Community Media Fund by 2006. The Fund would support new community radio
>development and community media content including projects that make
>provision for the poorest communities, for cultural and lingistic diversity
>and for the equal participation of women and girls. The Fund should also
>support community projects that combine the use of traditional media and
>new communication technologies. The Fund should be established through a
>donor - civil society partnership involving leading community media
>organisations and civil society organisations working in this field.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>________________________________________
>
>wsis-gc is a listserve set up by the WSIS Gender Caucus, a global group of
>women and men working on gender equality and Information Society issues. It
>has been established to circulate information in preparation for the World
>Summit on the Information Society, which takes place in two phases -- WSIS
2003,
>December 2003 in Geneva and WSIS 2005 in Tunis.
>To learn more about the WSIS Gender Caucus check out the web-site at:
>http://www.genderwsis.org
>For the WSIS Gender Caucus archives, go to:
>http://www.lists.kabissa.org/mailman/listinfo/wsis-gendercaucus
>