A free press is a key element in the global fight against poverty and can act as a catalyst for economic development, World Bank president James D. Wolfensohn says.
But out of a global population of 6 billion people, only 1,2 billion live in countries with access to a free press. Of the remainder, 2,4 billion live without a free press and a further 2,4 billion live in countries where the press is only partially free.
– It is striking that the majority of those people live in the developing world, Wolfensohn says. – These imbalances in press freedom reflect broader imbalances between the rich and poor countries.
A free press not only serves as an outlet for expression, but it also provides a source of accountability, a vehicle for civic participation, and a check on official corruption. It can also contribute to education programs and public health programs such as the fight against HIV/AIDS.
On May 3, which has been designated World Press Freedom Day, the World Bank will host a number of events in Washington DC to draw attention to the issue.
These include a Presidential lecture by the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Iranian lawyer and human rights advocate, Shirin Ebadi, and the opening of the World Press Photo Exhibition 2004 at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington.
The exhibit, assembled by the Netherlands-based World Press Photo Foundation, showcases some of the best work by photojournalists from 118 countries. It has become a platform for photojournalism, press freedom and the free exchange of information.
The foundation holds an annual world-wide press photo contest and the winning photographs are displayed in the exhibit which is shown around the world. This year, nearly 4.000 photographers from more than 100 countries submitted 62.000 images to the competition.
– The World Press Photo Foundation and the photo exhibit represent support of freedom of expression, said Erich Vogt, Head of Broadcast and Creative Services, in the External affairs Vice Presidency who organized this project for the Bank.
He added that photographs convey a thousand words and are an excellent medium for communicating and expressing issues of developmental importance around the world.
The exhibit of 219 photographs, covers a variety of subjects: It focuses on the best contemporary images from news, current affairs, daily life, the environment, health, nature, sports and technology.
These all fall under the broader umbrella of the issues the Bank has recently been focusing on such as governance, transparency, democracy, youth, technology and the environment.
The exhibit will run in the Corcoran Gallery of Art from May 3 to July 5.
World Press Freedom Day has been marked since 1993 when it was established by the United Nations General Assembly. Its genesis was a seminar on promoting a pluralistic African press which took place in Windhoek, Namibia, in 1991.
The seminar led to the adoption of the Windhoek Declaration which emphasized the importance of a free press to the development and maintenance of democracy and for economic development.
It draws attention to regimes that persecute journalists in the pursuit of their professions. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 36 journalists were killed last year while working to bring people the news.
– The context of what we are celebrating is very important, because more than ever before we live in an era of communications and interdependence, says Alfredo Sfeir-Younis, the World Banks Senior Advisor on Human Rights.
– Today, the media is actually at the center of every minute of our lives. Freedom is a state of being, an unbounded state that also brings with it responsibilities. he says.
– In a world of communication, not to know, or to know the wrong things is a major source of suffering, Sfeir-Younis said and continued:
– Freedom of the Press is anchored in the concept of the issue of freedom, and how societies behave collectively. Societies with no free press, tell you that there are groups, who do not know the complete dimension of their existence.
A free media promotes transparency, which is crucial in economic development and the fight against poverty.
The Bank has done several studies that show countries with a larger level of press freedom deal more effectively with corruption. This allows them to focus more resources on poverty alleviation. It also helps to strengthen institutions that lead to the overall development of a society.
This is also why for the past five years the Banks, World Bank Institute (WBI) has offered training to more than 2.500 journalists all over the world. The main offerings are on investigative and economic journalism. WBI also has more specialized courses on environmental journalism, reporting on HIV/AIDS and ethnic conflict.
Most of these courses are taught via distance learning technologies and make use of international and local partners. These courses were all designed as a response to the Banks recognition of the media in aiding development.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
