<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"><HTML DIR=ltr><HEAD><META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"></HEAD><BODY><DIV><FONT face='Arial' color=#000000 size=2><PRE style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 6pt 7.1pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric"><SPAN lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU">I have just made the following address to the plenary<SPAN style="mso-tab-count: 2"> on behalf of IFLA (</SPAN></SPAN><SPAN lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU">International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions)<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></SPAN></PRE><PRE style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 6pt 137.4pt; TEXT-INDENT: -130.3pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric"><PRE style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 6pt 137.4pt; TEXT-INDENT: -130.3pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric"><SPAN lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></PRE><SPAN lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 16pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU">Libraries the Information Society in Action<o:p></o:p></SPAN></PRE><PRE style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 6pt 7.1pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric; TEXT-ALIGN: center"><SPAN lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU">Address to Plenary, World <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Summit</st1:place></st1:City> on the Information Society,<o:p></o:p></SPAN></PRE><PRE style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 6pt 7.1pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric; TEXT-ALIGN: center"><st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><SPAN lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU">Tunis</SPAN></st1:place></st1:State><SPAN lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU">, 18 November 2005<o:p></o:p></SPAN></PRE>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 6pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU><o:p><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">President of the World Summit on the Information Society,
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>We congratulate those who have been involved in this long WSIS process on
what has been achieved to date and encourage full commitment to the
implementation of the goals expressed in <st1:City w:st="on">Geneva</st1:City>
and here in <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Tunis</st1:place></st1:State>.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">I have the honour to speak to you as the President of the
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions which is the
global organisation for libraries and information services and represents more
than 500 thousand library service points as well as the 2.5 billion registered
library users around the world.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">We are concerned with the young child who opens his first
book or clicks on her first website, with the student who researches a topic,
with the professional building a career, with the farmer trying to be more
competitive, with the researcher using e-journals to investigate a new material
or prevention of a disease and with all the people whose lives are changed
through ready access to relevant and reliable information in any format.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">We stand with the Secretary-General of the United Nations
and other distinguished speakers in stating without equivocation
<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt 36pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">Everyone has the right to freedom of expression; this
right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek,
receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of
frontiers.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">The Federation and our member organisations are vitally
involved with the creation of the Information Society and its consequences for
both economic and social development.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>To advance that agenda, which is vital for a secure and fair world, last
week the Federation held a pre <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Summit</st1:place></st1:City> meeting, <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Libraries: the Information Society in
Action</I> in conjunction with UNESCO and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>We discussed the key issues of the
information society and proclaimed a manifesto, <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The</I> <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on"><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Alexandria</I></st1:place></st1:City><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"> Manifesto on Libraries, the Information
Society in Action</I>.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">The Manifesto recognises that libraries and information
services are essential to the roll out of the inclusive Information
Society.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Their impartial operation
helps to safeguard universal civil rights and intellectual freedom.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The unique feature of libraries and
information services is that they respond to the particular questions and needs
of individuals, complementing the general transmission of knowledge by the mass
media.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>They build capacity and
provide support and training for effective use of digital and other information
resources. Libraries are critical to the development agenda and help to realise
the Millennium Development Goals, including reduction of poverty.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">To enable access to information by all peoples, the
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions is committed
to the fundamental human rights to know, learn and communicate without
restriction.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>It opposes censorship
and supports balance and fairness in intellectual property regulation. IFLA is
also vitally concerned to promote multilingual content, cultural diversity and
the special needs of Indigenous peoples, minorities and those with
disabilities.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">IFLA urges national, regional and local governments as
well as international organisations to <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt 36pt; TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"><SPAN
style="mso-list: Ignore">·<SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN lang=EN-AU
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT face="Times New Roman">invest
in library and information services as vital elements of Information Society
strategies, policies and budgets<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt 36pt; TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"><SPAN
style="mso-list: Ignore">·<SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN lang=EN-AU
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT face="Times New Roman">promote
open access to information and recognise the importance of information literacy
and vigorously support for strategies to create a literate and skilled populace
which can advance and benefit from the global Information
Society.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">The version of this paper to be loaded to the website
includes the key statements by IFLA, the Information Literacy Experts Meeting
and the Conference of Directors of National
Libraries.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
lang=EN-AU style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face="Times New Roman">Your Excellency, delegates and observers, I thank you for
your time and encourage you to continue the work to create an information
society for all, an information society which guarantees the dual freedoms of
access to information and of expression and which will be facilitated by
strengthening the global network of
libraries.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>