First Hemispheric Conference on Free Expression
The First Hemispheric Conference on Free Expression took place in March 1994 in Mexico City, bringing together approximately seventy participants, including publishers, editors, reporters, and government officials from North and South America. Organized by publisher James McClatchy and sponsored by the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), the conference aimed to address issues surrounding censorship and promote the fundamental principle of free expression. Javier Perez de Cuellar, the former Secretary General of the United Nations, served as the general chairman of the event.
During the conference, delegates crafted a ten-point declaration that emphasized the importance of freedom of speech and press as essential rights. The declaration highlighted that a free press is crucial for liberty and called for the elimination of laws that infringe upon these freedoms. It also encouraged governments to ensure their citizens have access to complete and unrestricted information, condemning censorship and other barriers to free expression. The IAPA intended to gather further endorsements from global leaders and organizations to promote the declaration on an international scale, underlining the commitment to uphold free expression across the Americas.
First Hemispheric Conference on Free Expression
Date: March 9-11, 1994
Place: Mexico City, Mexico
Significance: This conference produced a proclamation of free speech principles, including a rejection of censorship, that was approved by a broad range of international representatives
In March, 1994, a group of about seventy publishers, editors, reporters, government officials, and others from North and South America met in Mexico City for a hemispheric conference promoting free expression. The conference was sponsored by the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and was organized by publisher James McClatchy and thus tended to focus upon the censorship of newspapers. Former secretary general of the United Nations Javier Perez de Cuellar presided over the meeting as general chairman.
The conference delegates developed and approved a ten-point declaration of principles concerning freedom of expression. The declaration’s preamble stated, in part, that “a free press is the foundation of liberty,” and that “there must be no law abridging freedom of speech or of the press.” The enumerated principles declared freedom of speech and of the press to be “inalienable” rights; called upon governments to allow their citizens access to all information; declared censorship and other “obstacles to free information flow” to be “in direct opposition to freedom of the press”; and otherwise supported free expression. The IAPA planned to obtain additional signatures from other international leaders and organizations, and to disseminate the declaration worldwide.