HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Windhoek Declaration for the Development of a Free, Independent and Pluralistic Press, the Windhoek Declaration for short, is a statement of
press freedom Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic media, especially published materials, should be considered a right to be exerc ...
principles by
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
n newspaper journalists in 1991. The Declaration was produced at a
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
seminar, "Promoting an Independent and Pluralistic African Press," held in
Windhoek Windhoek (, , ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level, almost exactly at the country's geographical centre. The population of Windhoek in 202 ...
, the capital of
Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
, from 29 April to 3 May 1991. The date of the Declaration's adoption, May 3, has subsequently been declared as
World Press Freedom Day The United Nations General Assembly declared May 3 to be World Press Freedom Day or just World Press Day, observed to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press and remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the righ ...
. The document has been viewed as widely influential, as the first in a series of such declarations around the world, and as a crucial affirmation of the international community's commitment to freedom of the press. Subsequently, several similar documents were drafted in other parts of the developing world: The
Alma-Ata Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to 1936 as an autonomous republic as part of t ...
Declaration for central Asia,
Sana'a Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Gover ...
Declaration for the Middle East, and the
Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...
Declaration for Latin America and the Caribbean. At the tenth anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration, however, the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...
jubilee statement noted the fragility of press freedom in the face of
political violence Political violence is violence which is perpetrated in order to achieve political goals. It can include violence which is used by a state against other states ( war), violence which is used by a state against civilians and non-state actors (for ...
or
authoritarianism Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic voti ...
.


A New Communication Strategy

Since it was formally approved by the UNESCO Member States during the 28th Session of the General Conference (November 1995), the Windhoek Declaration has become a major reference in the United Nations system. It is part of the New Communication Strategy decided by UNESCO's General Conference during its 25th Session in November 1989, at the same time as the fall of the Berlin Wall. This new strategy ''de facto'' distanced itself from the
New World Information and Communication Order The New World Information and Communication Order (NWICO, also shortened to New World Information Order, NWIO or just, more generally, information order) is a term coined in a debate over media representations of the developing world in UNESCO ...
(NWICO) which was subject to controversies within the Organization in the 1980s. These controversies have divided UNESCO and caused the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
and the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
to withdraw from the Organisation (in 1984 and 1985). The NWICO was also subject to oppositions from several professional media organizations, which saw in the New Order a means allowing states to control the media with the justification, among others, to encourage wider and better balanced dissemination of information between North and South. The 1989 New Communication Strategy stresses that this can only be reached “without any obstacle to
freedom of expression Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...
” in accordance with the fundamental purpose of UNESCO to promote the “free flow of ideas by word and image”.


Genesis of the Windhoek seminar

The Windhoek seminar was a direct follow-up to the East-West Roundtable that the
Director General A director general or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'' ) or general director is a senior executive officer, often the chief executive officer, within a government ...
,
Federico Mayor Federico Mayor Zaragoza (born 27 January 1934 in Barcelona) is a Spanish scientist, scholar, politician, diplomat, and poet. He served as director-general of UNESCO from 1987 to 1999. He is currently the chairman of the Foundation for a Culture o ...
had rapidly set up in February 1990, a few weeks after the fall of the Berlin Wall, in order to address one of the numerous challenges generated by the end of the
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...
, that is the democratization of the media landscape in Central and Oriental European countries. Sixty independent journalists from the Soviet Block but also journalists from
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...
had participated in the Roundtable. Unlike the Windhoek seminar, the East-West Roundtable hadn't adopted a final text. Its main purpose was to offer a platform for free expression to the participants whose many had just come out from underground. Several representatives of UNESCO Member States also attended the Roundtable as observers, among them some African diplomats who had asked the Director General that a similar conference be held on their continent. The Windhoek seminar was organized in response to their request.


The Windhoek process

At the 26th session of the General Conference (November 1991), the Member States of UNESCO expressed their deep satisfaction with the outcome of the Windhoek seminar and invited the Director-General “to extend to other regions of the world the action taken so far in Africa and Europe to encourage press freedom and to promote the independence and pluralism of the media; (b) to celebrate the anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration adopted on 3 May 1991; (c) to transmit to the United Nations General Assembly the wish expressed by the Member States of UNESCO to have 3 May declared ‘International Press Freedom Day”. The implementation of resolution 26C/4.3 initiated a process in which all initiatives were related to each other. Thus, the Windhoek Declaration had a catalytic function in the democratization movement that was transforming the international media landscape of the 1990s. It was in this framework that UNESCO and the United Nations, with the support of professional media organizations, have jointly-organized four regional seminars similar to the Windhoek seminar: the first for the
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
n media (
Alma Ata Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to 1936 as an autonomous republic as part of t ...
,
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
; October 1992), the second for countries from Latin America and the Caribbean (
Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...
,
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...
; May 1994), the third for
Arab countries The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western As ...
(
Sana’a Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Govern ...
,
Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the northeast and ...
; January 1966) and the last one for Europe and North America (
Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...
,
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
; September 1997). Each seminar ended with the adoption of a declaration in which participants highlighted “their full support and entire adhesion to the fundamental principles of the Windhoek Declaration, recognizing its crucial importance for the promotion of free,
independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...
and pluralistic media, in written and broadcast press, worldwide”. UNESCO's General Conference endorsed the five declarations of Windhoek, Alma Ata, Santiago, Sana’a and Sofia at its 28th session for the first three (1995) and its 29th for the last two (1997). It is unusual for the Member States of an international organization to adopt texts coming from the civil society without making any changes, more so that these declarations are very critical of the politics and practices of certain States towards medias (without making specific reference to any of them). In addition to the adoption of the five declarations by UNESCO's Member States, the “Windhoek process” has produced other significant results in the media field: * In February 1992, UNESCO's
International Programme for the Development of Communication The International Programme for the Development of Communication is a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) programme aimed at strengthening the development of mass media in developing countries. Background O ...
(IPDC) has changed its operating rules to take into account the Windhoek Declaration's recommendations. Since then, projects submitted by the private sector have been able to benefit from the IPDC's financial support, on the same terms as those from the public sector. Editorial independence is a common criterion. * In 1992, UNESCO has provided its support to the establishment of an international alert network based in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, the
International Freedom of Expression Exchange IFEX, formerly International Freedom of Expression Exchange, is a global network of 124 independent non-governmental organisations that work at a local, national, regional, or international level to defend and promote freedom of expression as a ...
(IFEX) as well as to the creation of the
Media Institute of Southern Africa Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) is a non-governmental organisation with members in 11 of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) countries. Officially launched in September 1992, MISA focuses primarily on the need to promote fre ...
(MISA), one of whose mission is to support the implementation of the Windhoek Declaration's recommendations. * In December 1993, the
United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...
proclaimed the 3d of May
World Press Freedom Day The United Nations General Assembly declared May 3 to be World Press Freedom Day or just World Press Day, observed to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press and remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the righ ...
, thus embodying the proposal made by the Windhoek seminar participants and taken over by UNESCO's General Conference. * On the occasion of the 1996 3 May celebration, UNESCO's Director-General announced the creation of the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize which was a proposal made by the participants to the 1993 Santiago seminar. This prize is destined to distinguish a person, organization or institution which has contributed noticeably to the defense and/or promotion of
press freedom Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic media, especially published materials, should be considered a right to be exerc ...
in the world. It was awarded for the first time in 1997 and, since then, awarded every year by the Director-General in the occasion of World Press Freedom Day. The prizewinner is chosen by an independent panel composed of journalists from all the regions of the world and from all types of media, including digital media.


The symbolic value of the Windhoek Declaration for Africans

The personal commitment of a few African diplomats in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
(UNESCO),
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
(
ECOSOC The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC; french: links=no, Conseil économique et social des Nations unies, ) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields ...
) and
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
(UN General Assembly) has been crucial to the success of the Windhoek process. They were those who put forward and defended in these intergovernmental fora the suggestion made at Windhoek by journalists to establish World Press Freedom Day annually celebrated on May 3. They were also those who sponsored a draft resolution to the UNESCO General Conference intended to endorse the Windhoek Declaration. This African initiative has opened the path to the four other Declarations of Alma Ata, Santiago, Sana’a and Sofia to be adopted without objection. For the Ambassador of Niger Lambert Messan, president in 1995 of the UNESCO African Group, “the Windhoek Declaration is the African contribution to the edifice of
human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...
”.


References

{{Reflist *Martin, Robert (1992). "Building an Independent Mass Media in Africa." ''Journal of Modern African Studies'' 30 (1992): 331-340.
Celebrates Tenth Anniversary of Windhoek
- IFEX * Berger, Guy (2011). "Media in Africa: 20 years after the Windhoek Declaration on Press Freedom". Windhoek: Media Institute of Southern Africa
MEDIA IN. Twenty years after the AFRICA. on press freedom. Windhoek Declaration. Edited by Guy Berger. Published by - PDF Free Download
* Modoux, A. (2007). From Windhoek to the World. in "50 years of African journalism - African media since Ghana's independence" (eds. Barratt, E and Berger, G). https://guyberger.ru.ac.za/fulltext/50years.pdf


External links


Full text of the declaration
Human rights instruments 1991 documents 1991 in Africa African journalism Freedom of the press