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Statement by H.E. Ambassador Motoc,
Chairman
United Nations Committee on Information
Under-Secretary-General,
UNCA President,
Dear Friends,
Every year, May 3rd is a stark reminder for many of us, taking press freedom and the right to free information access, more or less for granted, that this is in fact not so everywhere, any day of the year. Can the UN family do more to help redressing this state of affairs? I believe this may be – in any case should be – one of the major stakes against which a lot of our expectations are pinned in connection to the coming into being of the Human Rights Council. The UN family is anyway making a difference in that regard by what it does practically every other day, here in NY, and on the ground, though not always such discreet and all-too familiar bravery and dedication of men and women serving under its flag is acknowledged enough.
UN's DPI and DPI's Shashi Tharoor deserve a special commendation here; we could hardly have had an individual to lead this delicate department who is closer to what international press stands for, and is all about nowadays, than Shashi Tharoor.
Every year, May 3rd reminds us that journalism in the service of humankind comes at a very high price. This year awarding of the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Day reveals yet another sad story of the sacrifice.
There is hardly any day in the year when UNCA is not on our minds. But on May 3rd, we have to take a moment and have a very special though to them; UNCA is very precious to us, their everyday contributions sustain our commonly held, deep belief that a global dream and a global house for that dream, such as the United Nations, can actually work to bring the brightest aspirations of humankind to prevail. UNCA is not close to our workplace, it is part of our workplace.
We've all come here at a critical juncture in our efforts to bring the blueprint for transformation, laid down by the World's leaders last September, to actually impact the works of the United Nations. As President Basescu of Romania said at the close of his speech before the Summit, "We leave behind a huge political investment of trust and hope on behalf of our people. It would all however have been in vain unless we will show positive political will in making these constructs come to life." I think we reckon that international media has been an important driving force in keeping the standards bearing on UN reform very high. I hope and I trust it will keep this commitment and this focus unfazed, for we realize more clearly now that the process launched in 2005 will have to be sustained well beyond the ongoing session of the GA.
The suggested backdrop for this year's celebration of media as a force for change is poverty eradication. And rightly so, for we may very well have succeeded on everything else, as long as poverty is still staring at us through millions of sad and scared eyes, we would not have accomplished much. Media can be of a huge support in keeping us alert on poverty until we are able to overcome it. For poverty should be a thing of the past, not of the present, and definitely it cannot be with us any more in the future. We collectively did fairly good at the UN Summit in that regard, and these positive developments should be covered and acknowledged as well, for what we are seeking is that such a contributions keep perpetuating and proliferating.
Thank you.
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