Originally posted by Atobe:
World's Press Freedom Day was observed by many First World
Countries, yet the local Singapore Press did not even write any
contributing article to mark this day.
The loud silence from the Singapore Press is significant, in the
light of the Press being headed by ex-Goverment leaders from the
main singular Political Party in Singapore.
The following is an excertp extracted from the ThinkCentre:-
Quote:
[b]World Press
Freedom Day on 3 May
(UNESCO)
In times of war and violent conflict, the dangers facing
journalists are greater than usual but these are precisely the
circumstances when independent, accurate and professional reporting
is at a premium. Given the pervasiveness and immediacy of modern
media, we all carry in our minds fresh and vivid images of warfare,
destruction and violence. We are aware, therefore, of the
conditions under which journalists sometimes work and the risks to
life and limb that they face. At least 274 journalists were killed
in war zones between 1990 and 2002. And most recently, of course,
death or injury was visited upon a number of journalists covering
the war in Iraq.
On this World Press Freedom Day, we salute all those journalists
whose pursuit of truth and information in circumstances of warfare
takes them into harms way. We applaud their bravery in the face of
dangers that may well be life-threatening. We admire their tenacity
in pursuing the facts. And we pay tribute to their professionalism
in seeking to penetrate the fog of war.
The risks facing journalists are not confined to wartime, however.
Translating the principle of press freedom into practice is no easy
matter. Sometimes, press freedom is constrained by laws and the
enforcement powers exercised by the police and the courts.
Sometimes it is constrained by unlawful violence, threats and
intimidation. Typically in such cases, it is journalists and other
media professionals who find themselves, sometimes literally, in
the line of fire. And the price they pay can be very high indeed.
The statistics available from professional organizations tend to
vary but the categories they use tell their own story: the number
of journalists murdered, physically attacked or threatened; the
number of journalists arrested and imprisoned; and the number of
media outlets censored. During the past year, the global situation
of press freedom appears to have deteriorated.
Behind the statistics are individual stories of courage and pain,
of lives broken, of personal loss and sacrifice. Beyond the
statistics are the effects on all of us when journalists, in the
course of exercising their profession, are subjected to harassment,
imprisonment, attack, and even murder. Such abuses cause great
individual suffering but they are also a grave curtailment of
freedom of expression, with all that this implies as a limitation
on the enjoyment of freedoms and rights in society at large. For
whenever one journalist is exposed to violence, intimidation or
arbitrary detention because of his or her commitment to conveying
the truth, all citizens are deprived of the right to express
themselves and act according to their conscience.
The debt we collectively incur when journalists suffer on our
behalf must be repaid in practical ways. At the very least, we must
declare war on impunity. I therefore appeal to all governments, at
all levels, to fulfil their responsibility to ensure that crimes
against journalists do not go unpunished. It is essential that all
violations are investigated thoroughly, that all perpetrators are
prosecuted, and that all judicial systems and processes are capable
of punishing those found guilty. These requirements are vital for
correcting human rights abuses. Putting an end to impunity fulfils
our need for justice; in addition, it will do much to prevent
abuses occurring in the first place.
The right of all citizens to reliable information depends on the
courage and integrity of journalists, on the fearless exercise of
editorial freedom, and on the unswerving commitment of pluralistic
media to the principles of journalistic freedom and independence. I
appeal, therefore, to the international community and to
decision-makers and citizens everywhere to do whatever you can to
ensure that journalists can pursue their work unhindered and
undeterred, so that people throughout the world can benefit from
the free flow of ideas. For its part, UNESCO will act, whenever and
wherever it is necessary, to promote the freedom, pluralism and
independence of the media. We unreservedly condemn all forms of
violence aimed at silencing the truth. On World Press Freedom Day
2003, our arms are locked in solidarity with all those equally
committed to media freedom and freedom of expression.
UNESCO World Press Freedon Day
2003
Pall of gloom hangs over World Press Freedom
day
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Article 19 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR),
binding on all States as a matter of customary international law,
guarantees the right to freedom of expression in the following
terms:
Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this
right includes the right to hold opinions without interference and
to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media
and regardless of frontiers.
http://www.thinkcentre.org/article.cfm?ArticleID=2052[/b]
Hmmm. I never knew there was a World's Press Freedom Day. Thanks
for posting the excerpt 
The hard work journalists put in and the risks they subject
themselves to in order to present to the public true details of
events is definitely applaudable... I wanna be like May Ying Welsh
next time. 
But why... the silence from the Singapore Press? 
