Mithre J. Sandrasagra
17 November 2005
World leaders and high-level government representatives are taking a backseat to business leaders and civil society representatives at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) which will wrap up here Friday.
The WSIS is setting a precedent as the first UN meeting to involve civil society and the private sector in a multi-stakeholder dialogue with governments. So far, over 11,000 civil society and business representatives have arrived in Tunis.
The expansive Kram Expo Centre here, flanked by soaring tents, is packed with hundreds of booths set up by non governmental organisations (NGOs) and businesses. Innumerable conference rooms and pavilions are hosting presentations by civil society, and corporate public relations teams are in full swing distributing reports and flashy baubles emblazoned with company logos. In contrast, the plenary meetings of heads of state and high-level government representatives, hidden away in a remote corner of the exhibition area, seem like a side event of the summit.
In fact many governments themselves are treating the WSIS like a non-event. Of the 27 heads of state to address the plenary thus far only Swiss President Samuel Schmid represented a developed country. Leaders of 18 African countries have addressed the summit, highlighting chiefly development opportunities and unfulfilled commitments. "Thirty-four of the 49 Least Developed Countries are in Africa," President Olusegun Obasanjo, of Nigeria stressed Wednesday. WSIS organizers expected 50-plus heads of state, just six are scheduled to speak on Friday.
Ironically, Schmid is the only leader to allude to human rights abuses taking place in Tunisia, the host country of the WSIS, a third world diplomat pointed out Thursday.
"It is not acceptable - and I say this without beating about the bush - for the United Nations Organisation to continue to include among its members those states which imprison citizens for the sole reason that they have criticised their government or their authorities on the internet or in the press," Schmid said, drawing lengthy applause from delegates.
"Any knowledge society respects the independence of its media as it respects human rights. I therefore expect that freedom of expression and freedom of information will constitute central themes over the course of this summit," Schmid added.
During the weeks leading up to the summit there have been various incidents in which members of international civil society and the media have experienced firsthand the Tunisian government's reaction to negative analysis. Christophe Boltanski, a journalist with the French newspaper Liberation, was stabbed and beaten in Tunis recently, according to Reporters Without Borders. He had just written an article headlined, "Demonstrators Beaten by Police in Tunis." Other participants in the summit have been blocked from attending WSIS related side events by the police. On Monday for instance, Tunisian police barred the way to Germany's Goethe Institut which was hosting a civil society preparatory meeting ahead of the summit.
Canal 7, Tunisia's public television channel, cut to a commentator before Schmid's rebuke.
The summit was officially opened by President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia, who welcomed delegates to Tunis Carthage, the "ancient city of dialogue". Ben Ali stressed the need for more cooperation between international players, to reduce disparities between peoples and ensure a balanced, safe and equitable Information Society. He called attention to the necessity of a set of standards and ethical values "to protect society from negative influences".
Ben Ali's comments were followed by remarks by the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who focused attention on the issue of Internet governance. "Let me be absolutely clear," Annan said, "the United Nations does not want to 'take over', police or otherwise control the Internet."
Other opening speakers included Craig Barrett, Chairman of Intel Corporation, Janis Karklins, President of the WSIS preparatory process, and Shirin Ebadi, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003.
Speaking as the representative of civil society, Ebadi recommended that a special committee be set up under the UN, with representatives from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the UN Economic and Social Council, the UN Commission for Human Rights, the UN Children's Fund, the UN Development Programme, and various NGOs, to monitor problems like Internet filtering and constraints on freedom of expression.
Karklins highlighted that the summit is "not a response to a problem, but rather to a challenge to improve the lives of people the world over".
Thabo Mbeki, President of South Africa, emphasised that developing countries are largely confronted by the challenge of exclusion from the global economy, in which modern information and communications technologies play a vital role.
Hans van Ginkel, Rector of United Nations University, said that this summit "should not be about who has the power to decide what, when and where", but a summit that focuses on "how to spread the opportunities associated with the Information Society to the most disadvantaged in the world".
Dayanidhi Maran, India's Minister of Communications and Information Technology, announced that India has produced computers that cost under 200 dollars a piece, possible competitors for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's 100 dollar computer launched at the summit Wednesday.
Noting that "human society is rich because of its diversity, including languages", Maran stressed that "the computer needs to be compatible with the mother tongue in order to be of maximum utility".
Renate Bloem, President of the Conference of NGOs, expressed concern that funding is not being made available for ICTs to appropriately address development. She asked, "Is the international community honestly committed to allocating the financial resources necessary to bridge the digital divide?"
Bloem also applauded the UN for consenting to civil society's move "from consultation to partnership" with governments.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2005 Inter Press Service. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
