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"ICT, WSIS and the Future of Freedom"
Remarks by Ambassador David A. Gross (As prepared for delivery) The Internet's Promise Some eight years have passed since the Information Revolution first crashed into our collective consciousness. While the Revolution has not lived up to all the hype, it has delivered on many of its promises. It has changed the way many of us live, learn and work. In many societies, information and communication technology has brought education to the under-served through distance learning. It has expanded the reach of health care through tele-medicine. It has improved governance by enhancing government-to-citizen and government-to-business exchanges. In the business world, the deflated dot.com bubble has left standing several important companies that did not exist 15 years ago. Ebay, Yahoo, and Amazon alone have a market capitalization of roughly $85 billion. Global electronic commerce revenue this year will reach at least $1.4 trillion and possibly as much as $3.9 trillion, according to a new UNCTAD report. (UN Conference on Trade and Development E-commerce and Development Report 2003). Perhaps more importantly, the way business does business has changed forever. Whether the issue is customer care, enterprise management, just-in-time logistics, virtual companies, outsourcing, or vortals, the rise of the Internet has fundamentally changed the way firms operate. The Challenge to Authoritarianism The rise of the Internet also promised to make possible an unprecedented exchange of information and knowledge. In the process, it promised to challenge censorship and erode the foundations of authoritarianism. In the most optimistic and simplistic formulations, the mere introduction of the Internet was going to unhinge authoritarian regimes and lead to a flowering of democracy. Some of these promises have been fulfilled but not everywhere and not equally. Undoubtedly, more people in more countries have access to more information than ever before. ICT has even played a significant role in promoting political change. In the Philippines, for example, "people power" activists in 2000 and early 2001 used short messaging services to help wage a campaign that ultimately unseated then-President Joseph Estrada. Many states, however, have sought successfully to stymie the free flow of information. The truth is that the Internet often defies but alone cannot defeat the forces of repression. Some countries use firewalls and force users to connect to the Internet through state-controlled networks. Some limit their citizens' access to computers, register users, monitor e-mails and impose punitive deterrents. Still others use patronage and censorship to shape what their citizens know. Some try to do all of these things. These countries are attempting -- vainly I believe -- to deflect
the course of history. With the aim of maintaining political control,
they run the risk of undermining much of the promise of the Internet
and denying their peoples a richer more rewarding life. Freedom
to express, innovate and exchange are the lifeblood of the progress
these countries and their peoples desire. I want to take a moment to follow up on the remarks made by President Bush in his November 6th remarks to the National Endowment for Democracy and his November 19th remarks at Whitehall in the UK. The future of freedom is nowhere more important than in the Middle East. We cannot lump together every country in the region. We must recognize and salute the significant differences that exist from country to country. Some governments, it is true, have been notably more successful than others in delivering on the promise of information and communication technology. Nevertheless, as Arab scholars noted in the 2002 UN Arab Human Development Report, the region as a whole is plagued by a "freedom deficit." The treatment of ICTs is part and parcel of this deficit. In fact, the treatment of ICTs is helping to perpetuate a regional information and knowledge deficit that undermines progress in every sphere of life. To quote the report, "Knowledge determines the wealth of nations and defines the livable state in the age of globalization." Yet Arabs, who represent five percent of the world population, represent only .5 percent of Internet users. There are only 18 computers per 1000 citizens in the Arab world, as compared to the global average of 78 per 1000. To gain the full measure of the ICTs' benefits, Arab states must create conditions where the Internet can be used to freely create and share information and knowledge. While Arab states have been reluctantly ceding their monopoly over the telecommunications sector, they must also abandon their monopoly over the content of information. The Internet could be used more effectively in the Arab world
to allow NGOs to thrive. The Internet could be used more effectively
to address the region's education, training and public health
challenges. The Internet could be used more effectively to make
governments more accessible, accountable and transparent. The
Arab world can achieve these goals but only if it embraces the
freedom that sustains such progress. The Foundations of the Information Society This brings me, finally, to the World Summit on the Information Society. If the WSIS is to succeed in outlining a vision of the information society that truly enhances our lives it must embrace and encourage freedom in all regions of the world. To quote my boss, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "In the new century, growth will be based on information and opportunity. Information drives markets, ensures a rapid reaction to health crises like SARS, and brings new entrepreneurial opportunities to societies....The keys to prosperity in an information economy are education, individual creativity, and an environment of political and economic freedom. An environment of economic and political freedom is the sina qua non for the kind of progress we are talking about." WSIS' overriding vision for the information society should be
one that promotes We must work together to ensure that the Summit achieves concrete
outcomes that The final Summit Declaration and Plan of Action should promote
press freedom Conclusion In conclusion let me say that we all recognize that ICT has become
a new tool |