Summary: April 28, 2003: Statement by H.E. Ambassador Adamantios Th. Vassilakis, Permanent Representative of Greece to the UN, on behalf of the European Union. 25th Session, Committee on Information (New York)
Mr Chairman,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The acceding countries Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia, the associated countries Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey, and the EFTA countries, members of the European Economic Area, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway align themselves with this statement.
Mr. Chairman,
Please allow me to begin by congratulating the Department of Public Information (DPI) for presenting its reports to the Committee on Information (COI). We fully acknowledge the Department's courageous efforts to meet the demands of a challenging, efficiency-oriented and productivity-targeted environment.
The European Union and the countries aligned with this statement express their appreciation for the constructive interaction between the DPI and the members of the COI. In the deliberations that will follow during this session, the EU is willing to work hand-in-hand with other countries to reach common ground for the benefit of all.
Following-up on our commitment made last year, we remain fully supportive of the important role of the DPI as we are convinced that the United Nations should strengthen its efforts in informing the peoples of the world about its aims and activities. The extraordinary opportunity provided by the new strategic direction which the DPI has embraced will further rationalise and optimise its activities, maximise the use of its resources and enhance its political visibility and impact.
REORIENTATION OF UN ACTIVITIES
Mr. Chairman,
We are happy to see that the proposals of the Secretary-General in document A/57/387 and endorsed by the General Assembly in Resolution 57/300 are being adhered to, and we urge the Secretary-General to continue this process. The EU welcomes the new organizational structure of the DPI launched on November 1st, 2002. The EU considers that with the new Strategic Communications Division, News and Media Division and Outreach Division, the DPI now has all the necessary tools to carry out its
activities.
Furthermore, the EU is very pleased to see that the DPI's new mission statement echoes the guidelines set forth in the Millennium Declaration, by focusing on poverty, conflict prevention, sustainable development, human rights, the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the battle against international terrorism and the needs of the African continent.
It has long been our view that the information revolution and advancements in communications technology can enhance the prospects of social development and economic growth.
We also share the approach taken by the DPI of using appropriate intermediaries in order to leverage its activities and achieve greatest public impact.
The EU considers self-evaluation and performance management as indispensable to the success of a large and complex organization such as the DPI. These principles are, in our view, inherent to the daily work of the DPI. We should like to stress that such techniques and procedures are fundamental to modern management success and are already enshrined in the PPBME rules of the UN. They should not, therefore, be made contingent on resources from elsewhere in the programme being freed up, nor should
they be optional for any programme manager.
We were pleased to see the reference in paragraph 46 of the reorientation report to consolidate where possible, information centres in existing UN houses in the field. We should have liked some further elaboration of what has been achieved thus far, and to what extent this process can be continued in the future.
With regard to the functioning of the Official Document System (ODS), the European Union welcomes the successful implementation of the full multilingual support function. The EU now looks forward to the implementation of free, public access to the System as a final step in upgrading the existing proprietary system to a new open system.
We commend the imaginative efforts to expand the UN's language capacity world-wide through the academic community and urge the DPI to continue its good work in this area. We also fully agree that the responsibility for achieving greater language parity on the web site should not fall to DPI alone but should be shared with other programme managers in the organization.
UNICs
Mr. Chairman,
The EU supports the restructuring of the DPI, including, as stated in action 8 of the Secretary-General's Report on the strengthening of the United Nations, the implementation of the rationalization of the network of the United Nations Information Centres around regional hubs in consultations with concerned Member States.
This reform should be an opportunity to reinforce multilingualism in the communications activities of the United Nations.
BUDGET
Mr. Chairman,
The EU welcomes the opportunity to see the programme narrative of DPI's budget bid. We have consistently supported the need for as strong public information capability for the UN. We recall that the resource bids for all the programmes of the DPI in 2002-2003 were agreed in full by the General Assembly, even at a time of budgetary constraints elsewhere throughout the UN system.
The resource picture is unlikely to be any easier this year - therefore prioritization of important activities so as to accommodate new and changing tasks is a fundamental necessity. This makes it all the more important for the DPI to present its proposals and bids in a clear, strategic and measurable way. We are sure that, during the deliberations of this Committee, the Secretariat will be able to furnish us with more precise details concerning indicators of achievement, and baselines from
which to measure future success. We note that the budget fascicle to be introduced in the 58th session has already gone some way to quantifying some of these indicators. Nevertheless, notions of "satisfaction" and "efficiency" which permeate the reports under consideration demand a more thorough interpretation from the part of the DPI.
RADIO
Mr. Chairman,
The use of radio broadcasting as a means of disseminating information about the UN and its activities remains the most cost-efficient and far reaching traditional media available. We believe that the DPI should continue to build partnerships with local, national and regional broadcasters to extend the UN message to all the corners of the world. It should also continue its focus on enhancing all six official UN languages, as well as Portuguese, in order to stimulate the interest of an
ever-increasing listenership.
LIBRARIES
Mr. Chairman,
The EU welcomes the creation of the Steering Committee to develop and implement strategies to achieve a more modern, efficient and accessible library system within the UN, as an important first step on the path to reform.
The EU will seek further clarification and information on the in-depth review of library activities to be submitted to the General Assembly at its 57th session, as requested in paragraph 34 of its resolution 56/253.
The EU would also appreciate further information on the programme of work and schedule of the Steering Committee, and on the proposals of the Secretary-General to implement action 9 of his report entitled "strengthening of the United Nations: an agenda for further change", as requested by the General Assembly in paragraph 14 of its Resolution 57/300, for further consideration by the relevant United Nations bodies, including the Committee on Information in its 25th session, with a view to taking
a decision in its 58th session.
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY
Mr. Chairman,
As we prepare for the commemoration of World Press Freedom Day on 3 May, I would like to reiterate our commitment to free press and its important role in a free society.
The death of 70 journalists and media staff in 2002, during their professional activities, cannot be understood as just a number of human casualties. It's a cause of even greater concern when realizing that the journalist's task to inform the domestic and the international community, which represents a crucial element of democracy building, continues to be disrespected in some parts of the world.
It is regrettable that in many countries freedom of press does not exist, and the dissemination of information is controlled and limited. We would like to remind this august body that the freedom of opinion and expression is a right accepted world-wide by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 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".
We strongly condemn the use of violence to hinder the job of journalists and also condemn attempts to control or influence the media by distorting or suppressing information or opinions. We mourn those journalists that gave their lives while exercising their rightful duty.
Freedom of press is an indispensable instrument in establishing a democratic society after confrontation has ceased in an area of conflict. Indeed, it is a necessary tool in preventing the resurgence of hostilities.
In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, I would like to underline the commitment of the European Union and of the countries aligned with this statement to conducting our deliberations during this 25th session in a spirit of co-operation which has so excellently been exhibited in the past, aimed at seeking consensus.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
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