SAFEGUARDING FREEDOMS
Yesterday marked an important observance. It was World Press Freedom Day and it came at a critical period when the media is under implied threat by the Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (TATT) which is seeking to establish controversial boundaries for radio and television content. The observance should have served as a needed reminder to ordinary citizens as well as members of TATT, that freedom of expression and freedom of the press are fundamental rights guaranteed under this country’s Constitution. The protection of these rights is also clearly stated in Article 19 of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The importance of World Press Freedom Day comes with the determination that no Government or Government-appointed body or pressure group should atempt to abrogate that freedom. Of interest yesterday was the United Nations’ Department of Information seminar "Fanning the Flame of Tolerance: The Role of the Media," which focused on the issue of "hate" media. It is an approach which TATT should have adopted, the seeking of a meeting of minds and obtaining of the views of media professionals and media management before embarking on setting out and publishing policy positions, admittedly in draft form. Particularly, however a draft is worded or marketed to the public for comment, it represents, nevertheless, a not-to-be disputed measure of the thinking or at least the tentative position on the issue by its authors. It should be understood by all who are genuinely concerned with the issues of freedom, that history has shown that any successful attempt at limiting one of the freedoms has, invariably, ended up at the limiting of all freedoms, even though this may be done over an extended period. It is not enough merely to have private positions on freedom of expression and freedom of the press and the several other freedoms enshrined in this country’s 1976 Republican Constitution and the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and not be prepared to defend them. Instead, we should join with others in the ongoing debate to ensure that our freedoms are not endangered. And as we defend the right to freedom of expression it must be our role to appreciate that freedom itself requires us to understand that our role is a most serious one that calls for utter responsibility in what we print or broadcast.
Comments
"SAFEGUARDING FREEDOMS"