1 May 2001
"WHAT DOES PRESS FREEDOM MEAN TO YOU?"
In a special World Press Freedom Day initiative, the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) has asked world leaders: "What does press freedom mean to you?" Not surprisingly, the leaders who responded voice strong support for press freedom principles, but many of them also touch on some important controversies in freedom of expression debates.
"A free press will sometimes make uncomfortable reading for any politician. But any passing embarrassment or justified indignation must never blind us to its vital role in both the health and protection of democracy," says British Prime Minister Tony Blair. German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder states: "Democracy is impossible without freedom of the press. Complex controversies cannot be solved without freedom of the press, as questions must be aired."
A number of the world leaders emphasise their belief that press freedom must be accompanied by responsible and ethical journalism. "The Church recognises the need for freedom of speech and freedom of the press... But she goes further. Rights imply corresponding duties. The proper exercise of the right to information demands that the content of what is communicated be true and - within the limits set by justice and charity - complete," says Pope John Paul II. "Every kind of freedom carries responsibility," says Yoshiro Mori, former Prime Minister of Japan. "Respect for human rights as well as adequate consideration for the dignity, honour and privacy of individuals are absolute responsibilities inherent in freedom of the press."
Other leaders touch on challenges related to protecting and expanding press freedom. "The constitution and freedom of the press were the main battlecries when the middle classes of Central Europe first revolted against antiquated autocratic structures in 1848," says Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel. He adds that press freedom has been under constant threat ever since, not only in dictatorships and emerging democracies, but also "in those countries in which entertainment is offered in the form of information and where sensations, quotas and commercialisation of the news have been turned into goods." According to Swedish Prime Minister Göran Persson, "Only a press characterised by diversity -- both as regards opinions, technologies and ownership -- can be really said to be free." Meanwhile, South African President Thabo Mbeki states that none of us can "remain content while press freedom in its fullest sense remains in practice something enjoyed mainly by an elite -- urban rather than rural, rich rather than poor, industrialised rather than developing."
The world leaders' responses are part of WAN's World Press Freedom Day resource package for use by newspapers around the world. The materials also include a review of press freedom over the past decade, advertisements illustrating attacks on press freedom, details of the deaths of journalists last year, case studies on journalists currently being held in prison, and info-graphics on journalists killed and jailed. The package is available at www.wan-press.org/3may.
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