Sorry folks..forgot the attachment, am sending it now... :-)
Al
----- Original Message -----
From: Al Alegre <alalegre@fma.ph>
To: wsis-asia <communication@wsisasia.org>
Cc: commrights-asia list <commrights-asia@mail.fma.ph>
Sent: Wednesday, December 21, 2005 1:00 PM
Subject: WSIS Civil Society Declaration (final, English)
> Dear All,
>
> After a month after the closure of the summit, and a lengthy global online
> consultation process, which led to ten different versions, attached is the
final
> version of version of the Civil Society Statement on the WSIS (in .pdf format;
> (also pasted in text below).
>
> It has been submitted to the WSIS Executive Secretariat as Civil Society's
> official contribution to the summit. It will also be online in various Civil
> society sites (e.g, www.worldsummit2005.org). Please disseminate it widely to
> everybody interested in the summit or its issues.
>
> It raises important issues that were considered crucial from the civil
society's
> viewpoint. The declaration emphasizes free sharing of knowledge, financing of
> ICTs on the public goods principle, promoting free and open software, open
> content models and open access (telecom) models. It emphasizes the human
rights
> and pro-development dimensions of information
> society.
>
> The declaration decries the attempt of many governments of the North to
> undermine the relatively democratic multi-lateral systems like the UN in all
> policy and governance issues related to information society. At the same time
it
> also criticizes many governments of the South that have been against greater
> multi-stakeholder participation in UN processes.
>
> It also underscores the fact that not all civil society constituencies
> participated in the WSIS process because of many different reasons, and calls
> for reaching out to all the different constituencies for enriching the
> information society debates.
>
> If one finds the document at some places too long, and maybe even repetitive
or
> meandering, please understand that civil society has numerous components, and
> many voices, especially of those sections that may not get heard through
> mainstream channels. This document has emerged through a long consultative
> process among the civil society that had engaged with the WSIS process, and
> attempts to catch the viewpoints of many different constituencies.
>
>
> In behalf of FMA I would like to wish everyone the best of the season...Isang
> mapagpalayang Pasko at isang Bagong Taon na puno ng pag-asa (A Liberating
> Christmas and a New Year full of Hope...)
>
> Al Alegre
> Foundation for Media Alternatives
>
>
1673_2.pdf