ASSEMBLY WOULD ASK SECRETARY-GENERAL TO CONTINUE IMPLEMENTING ALREADY MANDATED ACTIVITIES, BY TEXT APPROVED IN FOURTH COMMITTEE

19 November 1997

Press Release
GA/SPD/124

ASSEMBLY WOULD ASK SECRETARY-GENERAL TO CONTINUE IMPLEMENTING ALREADY MANDATED ACTIVITIES, BY TEXT APPROVED IN FOURTH COMMITTEE

19971119 Inability of Committee on Information To Complete Task On Reform of Organization's Information Activities Would Be Noted

The General Assembly would take note that the Committee on Information had been unable, during its 1997 session, to complete its task relating to United Nations public information policies and activities, under a draft resolution approved this afternoon by the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) without a vote. The annual text, which generally provides a detailed public information mandate for the Organization, this year asks the Secretary-General "to continue to implement already mandated activities".

The Committee on Information, whose work this year was directly affected by the process of United Nations reform, had decided to split its annual session so it might receive and consider the Secretary-General's proposals on reform of United Nations public information activities. Although the Committee engaged in extensive consultations on the matter, it was unable to complete its work in time to provide a detailed text for consideration by the Fourth Committee.

The Fourth Committee, which this afternoon concluded its consideration of questions relating to information, also approved a draft resolution on information in the service of humanity presented by the Information Committee. By its terms, the Assembly would urge all countries, United Nations bodies and others concerned to cooperate with a view to reducing disparities in information flows at all levels by increasing assistance for development of the communication infrastructures and capabilities of developing countries.

The Assembly would urge that they ensure for journalists the free and effective performance of their professional tasks, and strengthen training programmes for developing country broadcasters and journalists. They would also be urged to assist in establishing and promoting telecommunication links at the subregional, regional and interregional levels, and in facilitating developing countries' access to advance communications technology available in the open market.

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That text was also approved without a vote, as was a draft decision by which the Assembly would appoint Georgia as a new member of the Committee on Information, increasing its numbers from 89 to 90 States.

Issues addressed by speakers this afternoon included the implementation and effects of proposed reforms of the Department of Public Information (DPI) and the matters relating to the integration of the United Nations information centres with field offices of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Many speakers addressed the increasing imbalance between developed and developing countries in access to information technology, calling for quick actions to rectify that situation.

Statements were made by the representatives of Cameroon, Nepal, Belarus, Indonesia, Viet Nam, Algeria, Iran, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Romania, Guyana, Paraguay (for the Rio Group), Egypt, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Malaysia, Libya, South Africa, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Russian Federation and Cuba.

The Fourth Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. Monday, 24 November, to begin its consideration of the report of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

Committee Work Programme

The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) met this afternoon to conclude its consideration of questions relating to information. It was expected to take action on a related two-part draft resolution (document A/52/21), as well as on a draft decision concerning the membership of the Committee on Information.

By draft resolution A, on information in service of humanity, the General Assembly would urge all countries, organizations of the United Nations system as a whole and all others concerned to cooperate with a view to reducing existing disparities in information flows at all levels by increasing assistance for the development of communication infrastructures and capabilities in developing countries and to ensure a free flow of information at all levels.

The Assembly would urge them to ensure for journalists the free and effective performance of their professional tasks; to strengthen training programmes for broadcasters and journalists from developing countries; and to enhance regional efforts and cooperation among developing countries as well as between developed and developing countries, to improve the latter's media infrastructure and communications technology.

In addition, the Assembly would urge them to aim at providing all possible support and assistance to the developing countries and their media through such measures as support for the strengthening of training programmes; the creation of conditions to enable them to have communication material suited to their national needs, including the necessary programme material for radio and television; assistance in establishing and promoting telecommunication links at the subregional, regional and interregional levels; facilitating their access, as appropriate, to advance communications technology available in the open market; and fully supporting the International Programme for the Development of Communication of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

By draft resolution B, on United Nations public information policies and activities the Assembly would strongly reaffirm its primary role in elaborating, coordinating and harmonizing United Nations policies and activities in the field of information. It would take note of the report of the Committee on Information, as well as of the Committee's failure to complete the task of its 1997 session. It would also take note of the Secretary-General's report on information questions (document A/52/455), as well as of the Task Force on the Reorientation of United Nations Public Information activities.

By other terms of the draft, the Assembly would ask the Secretary- General to continue to implement already mandated activities. He would also be asked to report to the Committee and to the Assembly at their 1998 sessions

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on United Nations public information activities, and on the implementation of the measures regarding information and communications approved by the General Assembly.

The draft decision before the Committee would have the Assembly increase the Committee on Information from 89 to 90 members, appointing Georgia as its new member.

Statements

KEYE NDOGO (Cameroon) said the role of Member States in taking the message of the United Nations to audiences around the world through the collaborative efforts of local media in individual countries was crucial. It was important, however, to remember the non-verbal aspects of communication. Actions spoke volumes. People of the world would not only listen to United Nations declarations and proclamations but would also look at its activities.

As authoritarian governments around the world lost ground, and with it their means for censoring incoming information, the world was speeding ahead towards unidimensional thought, he said. Unless some balance was injected in the flow of ideas, the world might soon cease to worry about freedom of expression and concern itself instead with maintaining the freedom to form independent opinion. There could be no freedom of expression without freedom of thought. He said there was a need for continued support by UNESCO and other United Nations bodies for efforts to help poor and developing nations to acquire a minimum communications infrastructure.

GOPAL B. THAPA (Nepal) said the United Nations must benefit from communications breakthroughs, without which it could not respond positively to the keen interest of the international press and public in its activities. The important role that public information played in building support for the Organization's efforts to promote international peace and security could not be overemphasized. "Understandably, therefore, the Department of Public Information (DPI) should remain at the heart of the overall information goal of the United Nations." The DPI's efforts to continue attuning itself to the new communications environment was encouraging. Its efforts to make use of the latest information technology, such as the electronic dissemination of materials, deserved support.

It was critical that DPI strengthen its information component in peacekeeping operations, he said. Also important was the need to foster greater coordination between DPI and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the Department of Political Affairs, and the Department of Humanitarian Affairs. That would ensure well-coordinated, accurate and up-to- date information on peacekeeping and humanitarian activities. Nepal was glad that DPI had already initiated steps to that end.

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ALYAKSEI SKRYPKO (Belarus) said that such measures as the decentralization of resources in the information field and their refocusing to the country and regional levels, with an increased involvement of local potential, deserved support. Such efforts could help strengthen the work of the United Nations information centres and of the information components within the Organization's field offices.

Belarus viewed as highly positive the planned actions to create a system-wide culture of communication at all levels of the United Nations, he said. Those efforts, further strengthened by the consolidation of all communications activities under a strong senior official at the level of Under-Secretary-General, would contribute to a speedy transformation of the United Nations into a more effective and communication-oriented body.

He said that Belarus stressed the importance of disseminating information about specific conditions that hampered the speedy achievement by countries with economies in transition of sustainable development in the social, economic, environmental and other spheres. The implementation of reforms in the realm of public information should contribute to the mobilization of international assistance for the implementation of political and economic transformations in those countries.

ANTONIUS AGUS SRIYONO (Indonesia) said that while the ongoing communications revolution had made a powerful and positive impact on a few nations, the majority of the world's people were yet to enjoy the vast benefits of communications exchanges, which could become a source of a better life. "Most unfortunately, some of them, instead of gaining access to the information revolution, have become objects rather than subjects in the flow of information."

In developing the mass media for the years to come, it was most relevant to stress the need for professionalism, social responsibility and a sense of ethics, especially since the media had been entrusted with the sacred duty of safeguarding public information, he said. Global satellite communication should continue to build bridges of understanding among the world's peoples by disseminating objective, impartial and unbiased information which was based on impeccable and responsible sources.

The Department of Public Information (DPI) should be strengthened to fulfil the expectations of Member States, he said. Indonesia agreed with the Assistant Secretary-General for Public Information that information on the United Nations was "a crucial part of its life-support system" and that such information should be accurate, of good quality and focused. It was hoped that the United Nations information centres would be strengthened, as they were a key component of the Organization's outreach, especially for developing countries. The integration of those centres with the UNDP field offices should be carried out on a case-by-case basis, taking account of the views of the host country.

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PHAM QUANG VINH (Viet Nam) said the work of the United Nations in the field of information should focus on the Organization's priorities, most importantly the maintenance of international peace and security and the promotion of economic and social development. Information had a crucial role to play in those areas and was vital for growth and development. In a world of widespread technological disparities, with a widening gap between the developed and developing countries, a new world information and communications order based on the free and balanced flow of information was of utmost importance.

The United Nations Information Centres (UNIC) were catalysts in stimulating public interest in the Organization and its work, he said. While his country supported their integration with field offices of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), that must be carried out on a case-by- case basis, taking account of the views of the host country. Addressing the use of new technologies to get out the message of the Organization, he said his country appreciated the efforts of DPI in the electronic dissemination of materials.

ABDALLAH BAALI (Algeria) said that rapid communications, increased use of computers and improved use of audio-visual equipment would be key ingredients in the lives of the world's peoples at the outset of the next millennium. It was important, however, to recognize the current inequalities in access to technology. In the past, there had been a justified call for a new world information order, but there had been no follow-up.

Regarding reform of the United Nations in the area of information, Algeria believed communications must be placed at the heart of the Organization's strategic management, he said. Reform measures should attempt to strengthen management; DPI should be placed under the leadership of an Under-Secretary-General.

He said his country also supported enhancing the capacities of the United Nations Library. A recent evaluation of the Library had very clearly proven its merits. The Library must continue to adequately serve all its users.

MOHAMMAD MEHDI YOUSEFI (Iran) expressed concern over the increasingly inadequate distribution of access, resources and opportunities in the information and communications field. The gap between industrialized and developing countries on information and related technology was widening, resulting in the emergence of "information poverty". The disparities and imbalances between the developing and developed countries had also emerged in communication infrastructures which distorted the flow of information. The "mediatized" world tended not to respect the cultural and moral values of all nations. A code of conduct must be designed to regulate the flow of information.

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He expressed the hope that the reorientation of United Nations public information programmes and of the DPI would not diminish its activities in the areas of special interest to developing countries. The General Assembly had a key role to play in providing strategic guidance and direction for the United Nations communication and information function.

The network of United Nations information centres and services played a pivotal role in all United Nations activities, he said. Iran attached great importance to the centres, which were important means for disseminating information to States, particularly the developing countries. Their efficiency could be ensured by providing them with sufficient resources. The DPI's efforts in keeping abreast of developments in the field of electronic information dissemination were appreciated. However, since information technology was not yet available worldwide, the DPI should also continue to disseminate information through traditional media and hard copies.

HONG JE RYONG (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) said that owing to a monopoly by a few countries of modern information and communication technologies, international information activities were being derailed from their original objectives. While such activities should contribute to promoting understanding and reconciliation and to strengthening cooperation among nations, some countries took advantage of their monopoly to impose their ideas and cultural values upon others, and even distorted the reality of developing countries.

The historical and cultural traditions and socio-political systems of developing countries should be respected, he said. Any move to impose one's culture and system through mass media should be stopped. The developing countries needed to strengthen their cooperation and exchange in the information field based on the principle of collective self-reliance.

The decision to establish international information centres in different parts of the world, as announced in the Pyongyang Declaration, was one measure taken by the non-aligned countries to enhance South-South cooperation in the field of information, he said. The United Nations should regard the establishment of a new and equitable international information and communication order as one of its major tasks. It should take substantial measures to promote its realization, taking full account of the will of the developing countries, which made up the majority of the Organization's membership.

PETRU DUMITRIU (Romania) said his country had always been an active supporter of United Nations activities in the field of public information. An adequate public image for the Organization was needed. The commodity that DPI was trying to sell to the world was a crucial one. That image, however, should not be self-flattering or better than reality; it should be an accurate portrayal. In a world of globalization, the role of such information was essential.

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The United Nations emerging communications strategy must aim at achieving both global and local relevance, he said. The most suitable approach was to work in partnership with local and regional organizations. It was important to note that ongoing financial restraints might impede the progress of reform.

YUNIYA COX (Guyana) said the fact that DPI was currently undergoing a transition made this a very crucial period. There was no doubt that DPI had the capacity to become an integral part of United Nations operations. How that was to be achieved was important.

In an age of globalization, information and its associated technologies were very important for development, she said. Through DPI, the United Nations could reach every corner of the world. It must foster exchange among local cultures, creating an awareness and appreciation of each other's uniqueness, hopes and aspirations.

BERNARDINO HUGO SAGUIER CABALLERO (Paraguay), spoke on behalf of the Rio Group -- Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, Honduras (for Central America) and Guyana (for the Caribbean). He said the Organization's use of modern technologies to disseminate information was welcome. However, the decision not to overlook the more traditional means of communication -- the press, radio and television and video -- was also important, since the majority of the world's inhabitants did not have access to electronic communication networks.

The inability of the Committee on Information to complete its task was a matter of concern, he said. As for the United Nations information centres, they constituted a valuable link between the public opinion of each State in the region and the Organization. The Rio Group considered them essential in stimulating the interest of its citizens in the activities of the United Nations. Their budgetary allocations should not be subject to cutbacks which might undermine the proper management of such an important function. Their integration with other United Nations offices should be considered on a case-by-case basis, taking account of the views of the host country.

HOSSAM ZAKI (Egypt) drew attention to the inability of the Committee on Information to discharge its task, expressing the hope that such a development would not recur. The role played by the Committee on Information was a major and essential one. It could not be marginalized in the effort to reconsider the role of information in the United Nations. Reform could not be a goal in itself but had to serve all Member States which make use of the Organization's information services. It must be a dynamic process, aimed at achieving greater efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Reform should not target any activity or set of programmes for reduction or abolition, as that would run counter to its purpose, he said. Also, the Organization must continue to make use of traditional media, since entire societies had no access to computers and other modern technologies and were still fully dependent on radio and

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newspapers.

M.O. LAOSE (Nigeria) said that as part of a region in need of social and economic development, Nigeria was happy to note that "Development Update" continued to be published at regular intervals. The regularity of all publications on economic and social development was to be commended.

Peace, security and development were the focus of the United Nations agenda, she said. The information arm of the Organization should, therefore, not be silent on any aspect relating to the achievement of those objectives. There was a need for more coverage of disarmament, especially regarding nuclear weapons.

The strategy of the United Nations must include the dissemination of relevant information to different parts of the world, she said. While those in developing countries wanted to know what the United Nations was doing and could do to improve their situation, those in the developed world might need to know about different kinds of actions. Information centres had a big role to play in that process.

It was regrettable that the exercise of integrating some of the United Nations information centres into UNDP field offices had led to the lack of respect for the functional autonomy and programme of the information section, she said. The Secretariat must take immediate action to remedy that if the image of the Organization was not to suffer irretrievable harm.

IFTEKHAR AHMED CHOWDHURY (Bangladesh) said that without an effective public outreach system to keep the world community well informed and up-to- date on the Organization's pursuits, support for the United Nations would erode. The survival of its image depended on an effective public information and communications system.

Prevailing imbalances between the developing and developed countries with respect to communication infrastructure and technologies, which caused perennial interruption in the flow of information, were a cause for concern, he said. Bangladesh, therefore, recommended increasing technical assistance in the realm of communications to the developing countries. It also advocated the organization of intensive training programmes for media personnel and journalists of those countries.

FAISAL IBRAHIM AL-ZAYANI (Bahrain) said that information played an important role in international relations. It was a means of cross-cultural contact, an important tool for the exchange of knowledge, and it could consolidate cooperation among peoples. Personnel in the mass media must, therefore, act to achieve an effective information order which would help to consolidate a peace based on the interdependent interests of peoples.

Addressing the merger of United Nations information centres with UNDP

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field offices, he said that focus should be placed on the positive aspects of that exercise. The information centres were a structure through which the world saw the United Nations and were sources for the dissemination of information on its goals. Their effectiveness must be consolidated and they should act in such a way as to reach the masses.

SHAHRIL EFFENDI ABDUL GHANY (Malaysia) said that the advancement of communication and information technology in the era of a borderless world should bring with it greater access to knowledge and education. Member States had increasingly begun to realize the challenges and necessity of keeping pace with the rapid advances of the information age. It was therefore imperative to rectify the imbalance in the flow of information between the developed and developing countries, which had resulted in the distortion of information and inhibited the vast majority of the world's population from becoming informed.

The print and electronic media had become omnipotent instruments, used to influence and alter public and political opinion, he said. The virtual control by a handful of States and individuals of the flow of information was a real cause for concern. The promise of the new world communication order must not leave the developing countries and the peoples of the world marginalized.

He said that Malaysia supported the call to strengthen the United Nations capacity to communicate at the country level. Related to that was the need to complete the process of integrating the Organization's information centres, on a case-by-case basis and in consultation with host governments. That would help to avoid duplication and result in increased efficiency and greater cost-effectiveness. However, the Organization should be mindful of the need to ensure that the proposed integration would not be to the detriment of the centres' ability to carry out their functions. Rather, it should lead to their increased efficiency.

RAMADAN A. BARG (Libya) said the flow of information must contribute to the prosperity and economic and social development of all peoples. An information order which would serve all of mankind was desired. The monopoly of knowledge among certain Powers was a dangerous phenomenon.

The information media of the United States and its allies had distorted the position of his country regarding the Lockerbie situation, he said. The damage caused by such distortion was considerable. A code of conduct for information which respected the desires and stances of various peoples was essential. An effective way to increase understanding among peoples must be established, and the monopoly of knowledge must be broken. Access to knowledge was the right of all mankind.

ROB WENSLEY (South Africa) said that DPI continued to play an important

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role in the dissemination of information relating to peacekeeping, a pivotal United Nations activity. The DPI's contributions to certain specific television and radio broadcasting services, as well as its related peacekeeping publications, attested to the important role it played in that field.

He said that his country aimed at redressing past imbalances, to ensure that future generations enjoyed a knowledge-based society. New information and telecommunication infrastructures and technologies had the potential to be major contributors to overall economic development, not only in South Africa, but also throughout the continent.

SLOBODAN TASOVSKI (The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia) said that the integration of the United Nations information centres with UNDP field offices should be considered on a case-by-case basis, taking account of the views of the host countries. He stressed the importance of the information component in United Nations peacekeeping missions and supported DPI's involvement in such operations at their earliest planning stages. His country supported the convening of a two-day seminar on public information policies and practices for field missions in March 1997.

KIRILL K. SPERANSKIY (Russian Federation) said his country supported the Secretary-General's idea to make communications a central function for the United Nations and to strengthen its public information activities under the management of a senior official reporting directly to the Secretary-General. The Russian Federation also recognized the key role of the General Assembly in the strategic guidance of United Nations activities in the field of information and communication.

The issue of reforming the United Nations information centres should be addressed separately, he said. His delegation supported the Secretary- General's intention to focus on the use of national staff and on the need for greater cost-efficiency and professionalism. In view of the increasing role played by the Moscow information centre in disseminating information about the United Nations and in mobilizing support for the Organization, it would be reasonable to preserve that centre's autonomy to the maximum extent possible.

It was important to ensure the Organization's ability to send clear messages at the country level, he said. Among other means, that could be accomplished through the dissemination of United Nations materials in local languages. The Moscow centre did much to disseminate information about the Organization's activities in Russian. That language, which was spoken by tens of millions of people -- not only in Russia and the former Soviet republics -- undoubtedly deserved wider use in United Nations information activities.

PEDRO NUNEZ-MOSQUERA (Cuba) said it was important that the United

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Nations recover its leadership role in promoting assistance to developing countries in the field of information, particularly with regard to promoting the transfer of technology from the North to the South. That would allow developing countries to design their own information policies and disseminate their realities according to their own interests and particular conditions.

The dissemination of information in the world was still not balanced, he said. The status of dependence imposed on developing countries regarding information remained. All peoples had a right to access information. It was therefore important to enhance measures aimed at providing all the world's inhabitants with tools to allow them to be informed and to express themselves independently.

The gap separating the few who had a lot from the vast majority that had almost nothing was increasing, he said. The United Nations, faced with that reality, could not sit on its hands. The situation must be addressed so that the new international and communication order would stop being a fantasy.

Cuba had systematically denounced and would continue to denounce the radio and television aggression to which it was subjected, he said. More than 1,400 radio hours a week were directed against Cuba from United States territory. That was in open violation of Cuba's sovereignty and the most basic norms of international law. The broadcasts against Cuba fostered subversive, illegal and violent activities, he said.

Action on Draft Texts

The draft decision on expansion of the Committee on Information was approved without a vote, as well as the draft resolutions on information in the service of humanity and on United Nations public information polices and activities.

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