All people share a vital interest in the common cultural
environment. As that becomes increasingly monopolized and globalized, ordinary
women and men lose their ability to control their lives and the socialization
of their children. It is time for individuals and their organizations to
take
an active role in the shaping of their cultural environment.
This Charter aims to bring to cultural policy-making a set of standards that represents rights and responsibilities to be observed in all democratic countries and in international law. The development and ratification of the Charter is a continuing process, informed by international agreements and documents listed under "SOURCES."
The originators of this Charter are the Centre for Communication
and Human
Rights (The Netherlands), the Third World Network (Malaysia),
the AMARC-World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (Peru/Canada),
and
the Cultural Environment Movement (USA). This Charter
has also been endorsed by the general members' assembly of Videazimut.
We, the Signatories of this Charter, recognize that:
* Communication is basic to the life of all individuals
and their communities.
* All people are entitled to participate in communication,
and in making decisions about communication within and between societies.
* The majority of the world's people lack even the minimal technological
resources for survival and communication, and, unless resources are re-allocated,
new communication tecnologies tend to further widen the gap
between the rich and the poor.
* In a growing number of countries, the concentration
of commercial operators displaces public media, erodes the public sphere,
and fails to provide for cultural and information needs, including the
plurality of opinions and the diversity of cultural expressions and languages.
* Massive and pervasive media violence cultivates fear and mistrust, polarizes
societies, exacerbates conflict, and makes people feel more vulnerable
and dependent.
* Media employ stereotypes that misrepresent both women
and men; young as
well as old persons; whites as well as people of color;
racial, cultural and sexual majorities as well as minorities; the rich
as well as the poor;
people who are disabled and physically or mentally ill
or so labeled; and
many other marginalized and stigmatized groups.
Therefore, we assert that:
* All people are entitled to access to the resources they
need to communicate freely within and between their societies; * All people
need to develop their own communication skills, channels, and
institutions through which they can speak for themselves
with dignity and
respect, and tell their own stories;
* Provisions for all aspects of free, independent and
secure communication
and culture, and mechanisms for their implementation,
must be strengthened.
DEFINITIONS.
"Charter" means a set of guidelines that are voluntarily
adopted by the Signatories and that are used as their common frame of reference
on communication issues.
"Communication" refers to all interactive processes through
which individuals and communities share opinions, information, feelings
and ideas.
"Information" is understood in a very broad sense and
includes news as well
as entertainment in all modes and media. "Media" refers
to publicly or privately owned means for the mass-dissemination of print
or electronic communication. "Cyberspace" refers to the virtual spaces
that are facilitated through the
use of computer-assisted telecommunications networks
through which people
establish new forms of information sharing and interaction.
STANDARDS
Article 1. Respect
People are entitled to be treated with respect and in
accordance with the
basic human rights and standards of dignity, integrity,
identity, and non-discrimination.
Article 2. Freedom
People have the right to freedom of expression without
interference by public or private interests, and to have communication
channels independent
of governmental or commercial control;
Article 3. Access
In order to exercise their rights, people should have
fair and equitable access to local and global resources and facilities
for conventional and advanced channels of communication. People also have
the right to receive
opinions, information and ideas in a language they normally
use and understand; to receive a range of cultural products designed for
a wide variety of tastes and interests; and to have easy access to facts
about ownership and sources of information. Restrictions on access to information
may be permissible only for good and compelling reason,
as when prescribed
by international human rights standards or are necessary
for the protection
of a democratic society or the basic rights of others.
Article 4. Independence
The realization of people's right to participate in,
contribute to, and benefit from the development of self-reliant communication
structures requires national and international assistance. This includes
support of development communication and of independent media; training
programs for
professional mediaworkers; the establishment of independent,
representative
associations, syndicates or trade unions; and international
co-operation in the upholding of these standards of policy making, regulation
and management of media.
Article 5. Literacy
People have the right to acquire the skills necessary
to participate fully
in public communication. This requires literacy in reading,
writing, and story-telling; in critical media awareness and literacy; in
computer skills
and education about the role of communication in society.
Article 6. Protection of journalists
Journalists must be accorded full protection of the law,
including international humanitarian law, especially in areas of conflict.
They must have safe, unrestricted access to sources of information, and
must be able to seek remedy, when required, through an international body.
Article 7. Right of reply and redress
People have the right of reply and to demand penalties
for damage. Individuals concerned shall have an opportunity to correct,
without undue delay, statements relating to them which they deem
to be false and which they have a justified interest
in having corrected.
Such corrections should be given, as far as practical,
the same prominence
as the original expression. States should impose penalties
for proven damage, or other remedies such as required corrections, where
a
court of law has determined that an information provider
has willfully disseminated inaccurate or misleading and damaging information,
or has facilitated the dissemination of such information.
Article 8. Diversity of languages
People have the right to a diversity of languages. This
includes the right
to express themselves and have access to information
in their own language,
the right to use their languages in educational institutions
funded by the
state, and the right to have adequate provisions created
for the use of minority languages where needed.
Article 9. Cultural identity
People have the right to protect their cultural identity.
This includes respect for people's pursuit of cultural development and
the right to free
expression in languages they understand. People's right
to the protection
of their cultural space and heritage should not violate
other human rights
or provisions of this Charter.
Article 10. Participation in policy-making People have
the right to participate in public decision-making about the provision
of information, the development and utilization of knowledge, the
preservation, protection and development of culture,
the choice and application of communication technologies, and the structure
and policies
of media industries.
Article 11. Children's rights
Children have the right to mass media products that are
designed to meet their needs and interests, and foster their healthy physical,
mental and emotional development. They should be protected from harmful
media products
and from commercial and any other exploitation at home,
in school, and at
places of play, work, or business. States should take
the necessary steps
to produce high quality cultural and entertainment materials
for children
widely available in their own languages.
Article 12. Cyberspace
People have a right to universal access to and equitable
use of cyberspace.
With the increasing importance of cyberspace for many
social activities, people's rights to free and open communities in cyberspace,
their freedom
of electronic expression, and the protection of their
privacy against electronic surveillance and intrusion should be secured.
Article 13. Privacy
Media should respect people's private, family and home
life, physical and
moral integrity, honor and reputation. They should avoid
publishing allegations irrelevant to the public interest; unauthorized
publication of
private photographs or other private communication; and
the disclosure of
information given or received in confidence for health
or other professional or religious reasons. However, states should take
care that the protection of privacy does not unduly interfere with the
freedom of expression or the administration of justice.
Article 14. Harm
Media should resist incitement to hate, prejudice, violence,
and war. They
should not present violence as a normal, "manly," and
entertaining means of
resolving conflict but show its true consequences and
seek alternative solutions. Other violations of human dignity and integrity
to be avoided include stereotypic images that distort the realities and
complexities of
people's lives. Media should not ridicule, stigmatize,
or demonize people
on the basis of gender, race, class, ethnicity, language,
sexual orientation, and physical or mental condition, or victimize other
vulnerable groups.
Article 15. Justice
People have the right to demand that media respect standards
of due process
in the coverage of trials. This implies that media should
not presume guilt before a verdict of guilt, or invade the privacy of defendents,
and
may report but should not televise criminal trials in
real time while the
trials are going on.
Article 16. Consumption
People have the right to demand useful and factual consumer
information, and to be protected from misleading and distorted advertising,
promotion disguised as news and entertainment (infomercials, product placement,
children's programs that use franchised characters and toys, etc.), and
from the promotion of wasteful, unnecessary, harmful or ecologically damaging
goods and activities. Advertising directed at children should receive special
scrutiny.
Article 17. Accountability
Media should establish mechanisms, including self-regulatory
bodies, that
account to the general public for their adherence to
the standards established in this Charter.
Article 18. Implementation
In consultation with Signatories and others who support
this Charter, national and international mechanisms will be organized to
publicize and disseminate this Charter to the widest possible audience;
to monitor and assess the performance of media in light of these Standards;
to receive complaints about violations of the provisions of this Charter;
to advise on
adequate remedial measures; and to establish procedures
for the periodic review, development and modification of this Charter.
SOURCES
Although this Charter reflects current interests and concerns
of the Signatories, it has also been informed by and benefited from the
following
international agreements and declarations:
With regard to freedom of information: Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; UNESCO Resolutions 3.2. of 1983 and 4.1 of 1991 on the Right to Communicate; the provisions on information of the 1975 Final Act of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe; the 1991 UNESCO Declaration of Windhoek; and Article 13 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
With regard to the social responsibility of mass media:
The 1978 UNESCO Declaration on Fundamental Principles Concerning the Contribution
of the Mass Media to Strengthening Peace and International Understanding,
to the
Promotion of Human Rights and to Countering Racialism,
Apartheid and Incitement to War; Article 4 of the International Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; Article 5 of
the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women
by the Beijing Platform of Action of the 1995 UN World
Conference on Women;
and Article 17 of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child.
With regard to the development of communication: The UN
Declaration on the
Right to Development of 1986; and the UNESCO Resolution
4.1 of 1991 statement on Communication for Development.
With regard to the protection of cultural and linguistic
rights: Article 27
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Article
27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; Article
15 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;
and the 1966 UNESCO Declaration of the Principles of International Cultural
Co-operation.
Amsterdam, June 1996.
Forwarded by: Paper Tiger from
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Videazimut
3680, rue Jeanne-Mance, bureau 430
Montreal, Quebec
Canada H2X 2K5
telephone 1 514 982 6660 fax 1 514 982 6122 email: videaz@web.net
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