Dear all,
As I explained earlier, in last PrepCom III, civil society group had
started to draft Civil Society Declaration. The goal of this new document
is not for lobbying with governments in WSIS. In considering its indirect
effect on government, but primarily for our own future action guideline,
it would be worked out. Here, I enclose the proposed framework of that
document. It is one summary of our discussion in last PrepCom III C/T.
I want to hear your comments on that framework.
regards,
Chun
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Chun Eung Hwi
General Secretary, PeaceNet | phone: (+82) 2-2166-2205
Seoul Yangchun P.O.Box 81 | pcs: (+82) 019-259-2667
Seoul, 158-600, Korea | eMail: chun@peacenet.or.kr
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Proposed Framework for Civil Society Declaration
Presented at Civil Society Plenary, Thursday 26th September 2003
I. Vision (A Larger Framework of the Issues)
1. Vision of Information and Communication Societies
- Framing the issues so that it elucidates principles such as of
inclusive, participatory, sustainable, equitable and just
- Information Society is an evolving concept and not an end of
itself
2. Purposes of Information and Communication Societies
An Information and Communication Society is a concept/metaphor that we
re-frame in order to achieve the following goals:
- Poverty eradication
- Sustainable development:
- Attainment of human rights
- Addressing/Bridging the Divide: how ICTs are mapped onto other
inequalities such north-south, urban-rural,
- Building communities
- Core labor standards for all workers
3. Roles and Responsibilities of the Stakeholders in Information and
Communication Societies:
- State: what is their role of the state in the national and global
polity, address the shifting focus from sustainable development to
economic globalisation
- Private:
- Public/Civil Society: can't claim to speak for all; it tries to
ensure equal distribution of resources; Needs to show CSOs are working
outside the negotiation
II. Perspectives (A Focused View of the Issues)
4. Frameworks for Analysing Issues in Information and Communication
Societies
There are many different ways of analysing issues in Information and
Communication Societies, but we believe that the following
approaches/perspectives to be central for a Civil Society document which
can be used by different stakeholders and will lead to concrete approaches
to achieving the following goals as stated above: poverty eradication,
sustainable development, achievement of rights, different kinds of
divides.
" Human rights framework
- Communication rights as based in human rights
- Information rights
- Collective rights vs Individual rights
- Concern about the hierarchy of rights
" Equality & Empowerment Framework
- Basic Human Security/Welfare: access to meeting basic human needs
- Access: increased access to the resources that women or
marginalized groups need to survive and to improve their status
- Critical Awareness: increases women's and marginalized groups
awareness of the structural inequalities that frequently shape their lives
and the decisions they make
- Control: increases in women's control and ownerships of the
resources and decisions they need to survive, improve their status and
address the unequal power relations
" Views from the 'Periphery' - Intersectional approach
Historical legacies/realities: Colonial legacy, slavery,
indigenous people's, displaced
Geographical: South-South, North-South, Rural-Urban;
"Those who fall in-between the gaps": Groups/Communities who are
discriminated against based on gender, age, class, race, ethnicity,
religion, culture, sexuality
" Anti-Market Driven Framework/ Neo-liberal Economic Orthodoxies
Globalisation: economic, cultural and technological globalisation
Privatisation, De-regulation, liberalisation
Commodification of knowledge and culture
[NB: Suggestion that we state Information Society issues firstly
in the a positive focus and then address the limitations or other factors
that may affect the issue]
5. Unpacking key concepts of Information and Communication Societies
The CS will need to explore further and define concepts that we have been
using loosely and inclusively:
a. Society
- Citizenship, citizens rights, public domain, social solidarity
People-centered
b. Information / Information Society
- What is information?
- Information as a commodity for economic gain and not public good
c. Communication
- should focus first and foremost to prepare people to live in
culturally-complex, pluralistic societies
- Commodification of communication, Communication as an end in
itself
d. Knowledge
- Access and control of knowledge power. (e.g indigenous knowledge,
marginalized knowledge etc)
- Knowledge society
e. Culture Identify and Cultural diversity
f. Ethical Dimensions
III. Moving Forward (From Priority Issues to Concrete Plans of Action)
6.Specific areas
We have tried to cluster the areas identified in the CS Plenary and
providing examples of how the complexity of themes might be organized.
a. Media
Media ownership
Independence, pluralism, and diversity of the media
b. Public and Community Media
Local content development
c. Intellectual Property Rights
d. Regulatory Framework
- Balance between the economic and cultural
- Global Commons
e. Information and Communication Infrastructure
f. Governance
ICT - Internet
Accountability
Transparency
Participation
Democratic management of International bodies dealing with ICTs
g. Education & Research
Using ICTs in education
Media Education/Literacy: Critical awareness on the socio-political
sociio-economic dimensions of information, communication and media
h. Sustainability
Development: Social and Sustainable
Environment
Technology
i. Human Security, Secrecy & Privacy
j. Access to Information resources
Libraries, databases, archives