The Fifth Arab Reform Conference Comes to a Close
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Alexandria—
On Tuesday, 4 March 2008, the Fifth Arab Reform Conference entitled “Media, Democracy, and Social Responsibility”, came to a close following long discussions and debates on Arab reform, with 500 participants including researchers and university professors from 20 Arab countries.
Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director of the Library of Alexandria, stated that raising the slogan of political, cultural, social and economic reform was provided for in the Alexandria Declaration, and referred to the importance of supporting civil society organizations and enabling them to fulfill their role within the society.
Dr. Serageldin declared the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights, the winner of the fourth round of Dr. Adel Abu Zahra’s Prize, which is offered annually by the BA on the fringe lines of the Arab Reform Conference.
The Conference addressed the following themes: media throughout freedom and responsibility; Arab media: professionalism and political inclinations; role of the media and civil society in the development of democratic practices; media for citizenship and community rights; and electronic media and open skies and satellite channels.
The “Media throughout freedom and responsibility” report stressed the fact that entrenching of the culture of democracy breaks the concept of fear, and that democracy only rises in a suitable environment of free media, as freedom is essential for media.
The “Arab media: Professionalism and political inclinations” report stated that freedom of expression is essential for media, from drafting a press release, analyzing it, and commentating on it and for the intellectual discourse which measures democracy in a certain society.
The “Role of the media and civil society in the development of democratic practices” report stated that democracy is the process of selection from among competencies to achieve the best interest of people, and that media must conform with democracy within an atmosphere of freedom.
The “Media for citizenship and community rights” report mentioned that citizenship would be achieved only when the whole community is involved in media, since media has its significance in strengthening national identity.
The “Electronic media, open skies and satellite channels” report asserted the need to include substantive, objective and democratic material in electronic media; and the development of Arabic search engines to optimize the use of information technologies.
Dr. Serageldin proposed a review of the Alexandria Declaration in next year’s Arab Reform Conference 2009, and that all participants should be involved in finding alternatives to resolve conflicts, and hoped that the Arab World will be better off.