UN INFORMATION ACTIVITIES MUST KEEP UP WITH LATEST TECHNOLOGIES, UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL TELLS INFORMATION COMMITTEE

4 May 1998

Press Release
PI/1062

UN INFORMATION ACTIVITIES MUST KEEP UP WITH LATEST TECHNOLOGIES, UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL TELLS INFORMATION COMMITTEE

19980504 Communications Aspect Must Be Incorporated In All United Nations-Mandated Programmes, He Says

The Department of Public Information (DPI) must stay in the forefront in serving the international community by keeping in step with the latest communications trends and the latest technologies, the Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Information said this afternoon, as the Committee on Information began its 1998 session.

It was essential that DPI come to understand the requirements of today's media culture and respond appropriately to carry the United Nations message to all parts of the world, Kensaku Hogen told the Committee. Moreover, high priority should be given to incorporating a communications aspect into the planning and implementation of all United Nations-mandated programmes.

As an example of the new orientation of United Nations information activities, Mr. Hogen cited DPI's efforts with respect to the Secretary- General's recent report on Africa. As a result of the United Nations first- time use of the Internet and electronic mail to provide press materials, the Secretary-General's report had received outstanding worldwide media coverage, he said.

The Department would also continue to attach priority to the traditional media, particularly with respect to broadcasts in developing countries, he said. Among its activities in that direction, DPI was preparing to launch a pilot project for a direct broadcasting schedule for selected regions in Africa and Europe.

Speaking for the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, the representative of Indonesia called for more comprehensive media coverage of the ongoing struggles of millions of people against poverty, malnutrition and illiteracy. He said that such coverage would result in a world that was better informed and motivated to assist in the attainment of economic progress and social emancipation.

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During its more recent history, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) had learned an important and difficult lesson, a representative of that body told the Committee. The so- called new world information and communication order had aimed at redressing the imbalances in information by limiting freedom and restricting information flows; that must never happen again, he said.

Citing the disparities between developed and developing countries with respect to communications infrastructure and technology, the representative of Bangladesh called for increased technical assistance to developing countries. Bangladesh also supported intensive training programmes for media personnel and journalists from the developing countries, particularly the least developed among them.

The representative of Algeria said he shared the Secretary-General's vision of placing a communications strategy at the heart of the United Nations management. However, any transformation of DPI should continue to respect and completely carry out its mandates as defined by the General Assembly, he said.

Opening the session, Committee Chairman Jose Alberto de Sousa (Portugal) said Committee members shared the Secretary-General's views on the important role of technology, with its rapid daily advances, in getting the message of the United Nations "out and fast". However, while it was rewarding to see the growing number of people who "surfed" the Organization on the Internet, that did not diminish the important role of print, television and radio.

Also this afternoon, the Committee elected Abdullahi Abubakar (Nigeria) as its third Vice-Chairman, for a two-year term. It also adopted its agenda and programme of work, as orally amended.

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. tomorrow, 5 May, to continue its general exchange of views.

Committee Work Programme

The Committee on Information met this afternoon to begin its two-week session. It will continue its examination of United Nations public information policies and activities, as well as of progress achieved by the United Nations system in the fields of information and communications.

During its consideration of these issues, the Committee will have before it a report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of measures regarding information and communications approved by the General Assembly (document A/AC.198/1998/2), as well as a report on the work of the Joint United Nations Information Committee in 1997 (document A/AC.198/1998/3).

Statement by Chairman

JOSE ALBERTO DE SOUSA (Portugal), Committee Chairman, said that the opening meeting of the Committee's twentieth session was being held on the same day that the United Nations had earlier celebrated World Press Freedom Day, in honour of those journalists who were victims of censorship, repression and in many cases, death, while in the line of duty and in promoting a free press. Unfortunately, 1997 had seen no progress with regard to press freedom. An independent media without interference was of crucial importance for democracy and development. The right to freedom of expression had a further meaning this year, when the Organization celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of information and communication measures was focused on a new orientation towards carrying the message of the United Nations, he said. The appointment of an Under- Secretary-General to head the Department was a clear signal of the intention to develop a "culture of communications" throughout the Organization. The Committee had an important role to play in ensuring that the United Nations drew public support, enhanced its efficiency and strengthened its capacity to communicate at the country and regional levels.

He said that Committee members shared the Secretary-General's views on the important role of technology, with its rapid daily advances, in getting the message of the United Nations "out and fast". It was rewarding to see the growing number of people who "surfed" the Organization on the Internet. That did not diminish the important role of print, television and of radio, which was a cost-effective and far-reaching tool. United Nations radio was of key importance in peacekeeping operations and humanitarian activities. The Organization's partnerships with information disseminators, the Dag Hammarskjold Library, publications and United Nations information centres also played an important role in communicating at the country and regional levels.

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Statement by Under-Secretary-General

KENSAKU HOGEN, Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, said that the task and challenge ahead was to elaborate a comprehensive plan and strategy that would make the process of reorienting United Nations communications and public information activities a reality.

The Secretary-General had underscored the fundamentals of the reorientation process by emphasizing the essential role of communications as an integral part of the substantive programme of the United Nations, as well as the need to develop a culture of communications throughout the Organization, he said. In order to implement specific measures, the Under- Secretary-General would also look for guidance to the current session of the Committee, as well as to the broad objectives defined by the Secretary-General in his report:

-- The need to project the Organization as an open and transparent public institution;

-- The need to strengthen the Organization's ability to communicate at the country and regional level around the globe, and to strengthen its capacity to use the latest information technologies to that end;

--The need to develop the capacity to deploy given resources flexibly to meet exigencies;

-- The need to strengthen further the Department's capacity to work closely with other parts of the Organization to design and implement communications and information strategies for substantive and thematic objectives; and

-- The need to follow closely the strategic guidance and direction of the General Assembly on the implementation of mandates.

Mr. Hogen said that while the Department's basic mandate called for an informed understanding of the Organization's work, the effort required to have the media disseminate a sufficient amount of accurate information was greater than ever before. Sensational stories were inevitably given first priority in the highly competitive culture of today's media. In that environment, issues concerning conflicts and natural disasters leading to heavy loss of life invariably gained prominence. On the other hand, stories concerning, for instance, poverty alleviation, social development, the rights of the ageing and the disabled, rarely made it into the newspapers or broadcasts.

It was essential that the Department come to understand the requirements of today's media culture and respond appropriately, to get the United Nations message to all parts of the world, he said. Such effort required the

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collaboration of the staff of the Department, with the staff of the whole Organization and, not least, representatives and ambassadors of Member States. The need for communications therefore should be given a high priority in planning and implementing all mandated programmes. That also meant that the Department must strive to keep in step with the latest communications trends and, more importantly, acquire the latest technologies that played such a crucial role in the dramatic changes in the world of information.

With the current explosive growth in the reach of the visual media via the advent of satellite broadcasting, Marshall McLuhan's "global village" was already here, he said. The phenomenon of the new fourth medium, the Internet, had only added to the rapid "annihilation of distance", to use Arnold Toynbee's words. That new medium, though still in its early stages, had compelled information specialists everywhere to recognize and immediately respond to its far-reaching potential. The Department of Public Information could do no less.

He said the Department already had an effective and efficient operation which enabled it to play a central role in managing, coordinating and providing public information content for the United Nations home page on the Internet. He would strive to enhance the Department's capacity to use the new medium to its full extent, within available resources. One of the important recommendations of the Task Force was the need to strengthen the Department's capacity for strategic planning. In order to meet that need, he was establishing within the Department a Strategic Communications Planning Group to assist and advise him on critical issues that had a direct bearing on the Organization's image, and to provide him with a direct link to Department staff.

It was only through an Organization-wide recognition of the need for a communications culture that the public information and communications components could be integrated into all programmes, he said. The Department had a wealth of experience in working closely with other departments and programmes to develop and effectively implement publicity programmes for major world conferences and for special sessions of the General Assembly. It had also succeeded in developing close and effective relationships with the Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the Department of Political Affairs in ensuring that public information and communications were given their due priority in field operations.

However, while the General Assembly had established special additional budgetary allocations for the Department's promotional activities in support of the recent cycle of world conferences on economic and social issues, no such allocations were being made for the special sessions of the General Assembly, he said. The special allocation by the General Assembly of very modest amounts for such publicity programmes would greatly enhance its

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capacity to ensure the success and popular impact of the deliberations and results of those special sessions.

He said he was specifically referring to the upcoming special session on the world drug problem, as well as the Diplomatic Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court. The observance of the fiftieth anniversaries of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and of United Nations peacekeeping were also priorities for the Department's information and communications activities this year. He was working closely with the substantive departments concerned to ensure that those landmark events were recognized around the world.

Mr. Hogen drew attention to the Department's major media outreach effort to publicize the Secretary-General's recent report on Africa. To maximize impact, and in the interest of speed, United Nations information centres and services, as well as selected journalists, were provided via electronic mail, facsimile or the Internet with the embargoed press materials, along with the report itself. That was the first time the Organization had used the Internet and electronic mail to provide significant press materials. As a result, the report received outstanding worldwide media coverage.

An effective news-gathering and media response capacity were required to respond to the challenges of packaging and presenting the Organization's activities to the mass media in a timely and news-oriented manner, he said. In the interest of effective news-gathering, he would develop an approach built around the concept of a central news desk tied to the global news cycle. To strengthen media response capacity, an inter-divisional task force responsible for analysing media reports and for providing advice on appropriate responses would be established. The elements required for both endeavours were present in the Department.

Perhaps the simplest description of the Department's work was "building partnerships", particularly with redisseminators, he said. The immediate partner for the staff in New York and Geneva was the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA). Indeed, UNCA was among the co-sponsors of today's commemoration of World Press Freedom Day. In keeping with the Secretary-General's desire, he intended to establish a dialogue with UNCA's representatives, to be able to work together to ensure the best possible working conditions for them.

Another important partner in the redissemination process was the community of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), he said. As such, his objective, as part of the new orientation, would be to improve the facilities for their activities at the United Nations on a continuous basis. That applied equally in the field, where information centres performed functions similar to those of the Department's NGO Section at Headquarters. The NGOs worldwide would be encouraged to develop links with the Department and thus

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become partners in reaching out to the grass roots, to mobilize United Nations support.

The Department also had a significant programme of direct dissemination of information to the public, he said. More than 600,000 people visited the United Nations in New York, Geneva and Vienna every year. Together with the Public Inquiries Unit and the Group Programmes Unit, the guided tour programme constituted a unique and effective information dissemination activity. He would ensure that the current restrictions on the number of visitors per tour group and financial conditions of its programme were addressed, and that workable solutions were found to enable its continuation as a valuable communications and income-generating activity.

The advent of new technologies in the information age had significantly affected the growth of the traditional media, including radio and television, he said. That was especially important for countries where the Internet was still in its initial stages and was too expensive for widespread use. The Department had therefore continued to attach priority to the traditional media, particularly broadcasts to developing countries. Following his examination of the recently completed study on the feasibility of the development of a United Nations international radio capacity, undertaken with the cooperation of a major national broadcasting organization, he would report to Member States on possible future steps in that direction.

In the meantime, the Department was preparing to launch a pilot project for a direct broadcasting schedule for selected regions in Africa and Europe, he said. The posting of audio files of daily United Nations news bulletins on the Internet illustrated a new avenue of growth for the two media together on the United Nations website. In the field of video services, the ongoing partnership with the Cable News Network (CNN) in producing and broadcasting the "UN in Action" series to a worldwide audience was very satisfying. The new orientation would strengthen and encourage partnerships with media organizations worldwide.

Despite the growth of the other three media, the role of the print medium continued to be a central focus of the Department's communications policies, he said. As such, its publications programme remained at the centre of outreach efforts. Last year, a major readership survey confirmed the importance of United Nations print materials to redisseminators around the world. The Department would focus on its more demand-driven publication programme to ensure the production of high-quality, attractive material that demonstrated the relevance and centrality of the work of the United Nations system to the everyday lives and concerns of people everywhere.

As stated in the Secretary-General's implementation report, the Dag Hammarskjold Library of the future would be a library without walls, whose foundation would be technical innovation. There was little doubt that this

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was the wave of the future, and that the Department needed to keep apprised of the latest technology.

The local presence and community knowledge of the United Nations information centres had always been a major strength of the mission to reach as many people as possible, he said. The Task Force had stressed that the message of the United Nations needed to be made relevant to people at the country level. That was exactly what the information centres had been doing, and doing well. Despite the crucial need for professionally headed information centres, they had suffered greatly in the past decade owing to cuts in both posts and operational resources. Rather than lament over insufficient resources, he would examine how best to do the job within available resources.

To attain the communications goals set by the Secretary-General, he was carefully examining the Task Force recommendations regarding the establishment of regional hubs. Meanwhile, the weaknesses identified in the integrated centres by the Task Force should be fully addressed in a cooperative effort by DPI, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and other United Nations system partners. Such discussions were already taking place within the newly created United Nations Development Group. He would proceed on a case-by-case basis with the integration exercise, taking into account the views of the host country, and ensuring that the information functions and autonomy of the information centres were not adversely affected.

Mr. Hogen said his statement to the Committee was in two parts. The first part had just been delivered, and it reflected on the conceptual framework set out by the Secretary-General in his report. The second part, which covered the Department's activities over the past year in greater detail, was being distributed to Committee members.

In developing measures in the context of the reorientation process, the Under-Secretary-General would work closely with his colleagues and seek to take full advantage of their expertise, he said. The resources provided to the Department in the 1998-1999 programme budget were limited. Its task was to deploy those resources more flexibly to highlight the priorities set by the General Assembly and, at the same time, to fulfil all of its other mandates. One priority should be very clear: in the information age, the Department of Public Information had to stay in the forefront in serving the international community and the United Nations. Moreover, as the Task Force report stated unequivocally: "The communications function should be placed at the heart of the strategic management of the Organization".

HENRIKAS YUSHKIAVITSHUS, of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said that last year there were more than 1,000 cases of journalists being harassed, threatened or beaten. As a rule, the sole objective of those shameful incidents was to intimidate and control

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the press. It should be remembered that journalists were killed when, and because, they refused to be influenced, persuaded, bought or intimidated. In the past 10 years, more than 600 of them had been killed. In the majority of cases, the killer was neither found nor brought to justice. No other crime appeared to enjoy such immunity as did that of killing journalists.

In a welcome move to protect the security of journalists, the Organization of American States (OAS) had appointed a special media rapporteur with authority to bring cases involving violence against journalists before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, he said. That allowed for hope that the situation might improve -- and not only in Latin America, since such a move might also be a good example for other regions of the world.

The fight for press freedom had a long history, he said. During its more recent history, UNESCO had learned an important and difficult lesson. The so-called new world information and communication order had aimed at redressing the imbalances in information by limiting freedom and restricting information flows; that must never happen again. Neither UNESCO nor the United Nations system could afford to ignore the challenges of the emerging information society, and one of them would be the free flow of information.

He said it was no secret that the new world information and communication order, which was unanimously rejected by UNESCO at the 1989 session of its General Conference, appeared -- for different reasons and sometimes through misunderstandings -- to be resurfacing in New York. Under those circumstances, UNESCO was very glad to hear the Secretary-General, in his interview with the World Association of Journalists, state firmly that the concept had been dead for some time.

That was good news, he said. The bad news was that new and unforeseen threats to the free flow of information were emerging. Among them was the threat posed by media concentration. Commercial monopolies were no less dangerous to press freedom and the pluralism of opinion than were governmental monopolies. Any such monopoly could lead to a marginalization of the role of the press as far as the general public was concerned.

Both freedom of speech and press freedom often provoked public and political controversy, he said. However, experience had repeatedly shown that when freedom was diseased, the only cure was more freedom -- just as the cure for a sick democracy was more democracy. The United Nations family as a whole had to maintain constant vigilance in the defence of freedom of expression, freedom of the press and the independence of journalists.

MAKARIM WIBISONO (Indonesia), Speaking on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, said that in an information age, in which new media technologies were opening up new vista, the vast majority of peoples could not be deprived of that reality and kept from benefiting it for a better

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quality of life. Ongoing struggles against poverty, malnutrition and illiteracy were being waged by millions of people globally. If more comprehensive mass media coverage could be accorded to those struggles, the world would be better informed and motivated to provide its best efforts for the attainment of economic progress and social emancipation.

In developing the mass media for the years to come, it was important to stress the need for professionalism, ethics and a sense of self-defined responsibility, he said. The principles of the United Nations Charter should be consistently upheld, especially in making public information available to all humankind. That task should not be left to the media of a few developed countries which sought to impose their own narrow perceptions. The Group of 77 and China acknowledged the important work carried out by UNESCO and its collaboration with news agencies and broadcasting organizations in developing nations to disseminate information on priority issues. It was important for the United Nations and its agencies to make unswerving efforts to promote an equitable information and communication order.

Over the past few decades, the United Nations information centres (UNICs) had been a key component of United Nations outreach, especially for developing countries, where there was a need for greater understanding of the Organization's activities, he said. The problems encountered with the integration of UNICs and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) field offices were therefore a matter of concern. The process of integration should be implemented on a case-by-case basis, taking account of the views of the host State. Also, the views of Member States should be seriously considered during the development of proposals concerning the establishment of regional hubs by the Secretary-General.

Rapid technological advances in electronic and visual communications had transformed the international landscape into a global village, he said. Despite those dramatic changes and an array of technological breakthroughs, radio remained the principal medium of communication for millions of people around the world. It was therefore gratifying that efforts would continue to strengthen United Nations Radio with a view to reaching a worldwide audience and serving the interests of all regions. In addition, United Nations publications played a significant role in focusing global attention on the critical issues before the Organization and should be maintained.

ANWARUL KARIM CHOWDHURY (Bangladesh) said a major effort was needed to establish the principles of communications in the United Nations Secretariat as a matter of priority, with the aim of building a system-wide culture of communications. A strategic planning group should be able to identify and plan for critical, cross-cutting priority issues in communication. It was time for the United Nations to build a multimedia news production and dissemination capacity which would work closely with the Department of Public

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Information, as well as with the funds, programmes and agencies of the United Nations system.

He said his country was concerned about prevailing disparities and imbalances between the developing and developed countries in communications infrastructure and technology, which were causing perennial interruption in the free and balanced flow of information. There should be increased technical assistance to developing countries for improving their communications systems. Bangladesh also advocated the organization of intensive training programmes for media personnel and journalists from the developing countries, particularly the least developed countries.

He said his country attached great importance to the information-related activities of the United Nations, which contributed to capacity-building at the country level and strengthened the Organization's ability to communicate at the social and regional levels, where public opinion was created. One such activity was the strengthening of the UNICs. The decision to integrate them with UNDP field offices should be reviewed, taking into account the experience gathered until now. Such integration did not effectively serve the greater interest of the United Nations and its public information responsibilities.

Increased attention should be given to the electronic dissemination of information to reach greater numbers of people, he said. The electronic media, represented by television, radio and the Internet, could send clear messages widely and more effectively -- if that could be done in various world languages.

ABDALLAH BAALI (Algeria) said the presence of the Under-Secretary- General at today's meeting showed the importance that a new, reformed United Nations gave to the information sector. Today, World Press Freedom Day was celebrated in Algeria because of the several journalists who had paid for that cause with their lives. Yet despite the fundamental threat they confronted, hundreds of other journalists had taken up the torch, refusing to give up the struggle. Democracy and freedom of expression had triumphed in Algeria, with the emergence of several new daily newspapers and periodicals. The members of the Algerian press were called upon to consolidate their efforts with the forthcoming creation of private television channels, which would remake the audio/visual countryside.

The Committee's current session was taking place in a totally different context than that of preceding sessions, when the Committee found itself abnormally "off to one side", he said. It had been unable to complete the work of its nineteenth session, and had been excluded at a time when the United Nations should have benefited from concrete and well thought out proposals. In approving the Secretary-General's reform plan (document A/51/950), the General Assembly had made it clear that reforms would take the views of Member States into consideration. The DPI was preparing to start a

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new phase in its existence. Its transformation should continue to respect and completely carry out its mandates as defined by the Assembly. Any reduction, any change or abandonment of current missions or tasks adopted by Member States must be approved by the Assembly. That included questions of Palestine and decolonization, as well as information activities on development issues.

Algeria fully shared the Secretary-General's vision of placing the communications strategy at the heart of the Organization's management, he said. However, improving the United Nations image should not overshadow the main reason for DPI's existence, which was to provide a maximum of information. In other words, information activities should not be transformed into some kind of propaganda intended to improve the look of the United Nations in the court of public opinion. Its image would be improved by its own good works. The priority status given to some media members and NGO representatives to the detriment of Member States should be remedied.

He said he supported the integration of United Nations information centres into UNDP's field offices on a case-by-case basis. However, the suggestion by some to consider reducing the number of centres was problematic. Many were in third world countries which already lacked operating means. In those cases, host countries often supported the centres by providing space on a free basis. Greater attention should be given to the centres' needs overall.

Addressing the practical aspect of the Committee's work, he said that an open-ended working group should be established to consider the Committee's draft report. Recent experience had shown weaknesses and gaps in the present system, which often did not permit a thorough study of the draft except on a restricted basis -- resulting in a lengthy, two-tiered negotiating process.

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