MAY DAY & WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY
May Day, the international labor day, arising out of the sterling sacrifices and noble ideals of the Haymarket Square labor martyrs of Chicago in the 1880s – most of us know now, but many of us may not know about the World Press Freedom Day celebrated on 3 May every year, pursuant to the Windhoek Declaration formulated in a seminar held by UNESCO at Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, from 29 April to 3 May 1991 and gradually accepted by most of the countries in the world. The United Nations General Assembly in December 1993 proclaimed the 3rd of May as World Press Freedom Day, thus embodying the proposal made by the Windhoek seminar participants and taken over later by UNESCO's General Conference. The Windhoek Declaration underscored that “consistent with article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the establishment, maintenance and fostering of an independent, pluralistic and free press is essential to the development and maintenance of democracy in a nation, and for economic development.” And Article 19 of UDHR reads: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” It was clarified in the Windhoek Declaration that “2. By an independent press, we mean a press independent from governmental, political, or economic control or from control of material and infrastructure essential for the production and dissemination of newspapers, magazines and periodicals” and that “3. By a pluralistic press, we mean the end of monopolies of any kind and the existence of the greatest possible number of newspapers, magazines and periodicals reflecting the widest possible range of opinion within the community.” It was also noted in the declaration that “5. The worldwide tendency towards democracy and freedom of information and expression is a fundamental contribution to the fulfillment of human aspirations.” Truly, “the Windhoek Declaration is the African contribution to the edifice of human rights.” Both these Days remind us of the enormous importance of the basic rights of labor and the freedom of press for the general welfare and equitable development of the peoples. Particularly, in the current Covid-19 crisis days, with governments all over the world acquiring a whole lot of powers, and with some even neglecting/abusing them leading to lakhs of avoidable deaths even, these occasions offer us an opportunity to dedicate ourselves to, and strive to protect and promote, these essential liberties. §§§
No comments:
Post a Comment