Speech
of
His Excellency Fidel V. Ramos
President of the Philippines
At the closing ceremony of the Asia Summit on Child Rights and the Media

[Delivered at the Shangri-La Edsa Plaza Hotel, Mandaluyong City, July 5, 1996]

Our commitment
to our children

THE PHILIPPINE Government hosts this landmark, high-level regional meeting for one very important reason—to demonstrate our firm commitment not only to Filipino children but also to the children of our neighbors in the Asia-Pacific region. Our decision to support the Council for the Welfare of Children and the regional organizers—namely, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union, the Asian Mass Communication, Information and Research Center, and the Philippine Children’s Television Foundation—is proof of this.

As we of the Philippines prepare to host the next Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in November, it is only fitting that we also demonstrate that we consider our children top priority in our moves toward human resources development, which is a precondition to sustained economic progress.

The influence of the media on children

Varied forms of the media—especially the broadcast media like television and radio—are truly influential forces in the lives of our children. The media both entertain and educate; but the media can also be misleading and corruptive. Thus, it is vital to our children’s development that the media environment that we create and provide for them is truly responsive to their needs, stimulating and at best enlightening. Let me highlight some specific issues that I am especially concerned about as the leader of my country, as the head of a family as father and a grandfather.

My first concern is about the prevalence of violence on television throughout the viewing hours of our children. Combined with sensationalized reporting in some publications that graphically present gory crimes on the front pages, these messages communicate to our children things that should concern us extremely. How can we help our children grow to be peace-loving individuals if we feed them a TV diet that glorifies the use of violent means to resolve problems?

The limits of press freedom

Filipinos value and uphold press freedom, and Government by policy has provided a completely free atmosphere for the media. But such a liberal atmosphere must surely have certain limits in relation to our responsibilities to our children.

Unwarranted sex and violence have no place on television during the times that we know our children are watching. Responsible news reporting, especially of the “hard issues,” will help our children understand their world in a way that does not confuse or overwhelm them.

I trust that you have discussed alternative approaches at length that will allow us in Government to work collaboratively with the private broadcasting and publishing sectors in making self-regulation work. We have to demonstrate not just a rhetorical commitment to our children but one that translates into the highest quality media programs and products for them.

Second, I would like to call on all media practitioners to consider the importance of broader and more equitable access in order to harness the tremendous potential of the mass media for enhancing the education of children as well as the welfare of their families.

This is media’s most important role in capability building, community development and nation building. Yours is a public trust that must translate into a clear desire to serve the public, almost 50 percent of whom are children.

I urge you to balance commercial interests with public interests. Help us in providing information and quality local programming beyond the urban centers into the rural communities where the media can really be a partner in the cultural and social development and in the training of our people, especially our youth, toward a level of competitiveness.

Third, let us continue to address the importance of protecting Asian cultures in the midst of the global communications revolution.

We of the Asia-Pacific region are now witnessing rapid changes worldwide that affect our own societies. In fact we are participating actively in making those changes happen. It is necessary therefore that we anticipate the impact of the new communications technologies on our societies.

As the fastest-growing region today, let us insure that our gains will continue well into the 21st century—when the youth of today shall assume their responsibilities as the leaders and the workforce of our countries.

Growing up in a complex world

We must remind ourselves that our children are growing up in a relatively more complex and challenging world. Our fast-changing lifestyles can sometimes challenge or threaten our deeply held and traditional values. Sometimes the moral and cultural fabric of our societies are put at great risk.

Families, schools and mass media have important responsibilities in bridging the gap between the old and the new. We must teach our children the best that our indigenous cultures and Asian values have to offer even as we open ourselves to the diversity and novelty of modernization.

As we take upon ourselves the challenge of instilling in our children a sense of pride in their national heritage and in their own history as a people, let us help them learn to be tolerant and respectful of cultural diversity within and beyond our borders.

We must instill in our children a deep respect for humanity and sense of compassion while also encouraging them to be risk-takers and explorers willing to take on the excitement of new frontiers for development. They can only do this if we leave them with a legacy through media programs and products that communicate the value of their own cultures while opening windows to the rest of the world.

Promoting the rights of our children

Time and again, I have called upon the national and international media to be our partners in achieving our vision for “Philippines 2000.” Once more, I call on you to work hand in hand with Government, non-Government organizations and families in fulfilling our obligations to protect and promote the rights of our children, as guaranteed in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child—their rights to survival, to development, to special protection and to participation.

Media practitioners have a shared responsibility with us in government and with the community as a whole to raise national consciousness about the actual and potential value of our young people—so that we all can nurture them, care for them, teach them and put added value to them in their formative years.

I challenge each one of you today to be guided in your decision-making, policy-formulation, programming, production, marketing, communications, research and support services by one basic principle—to act in the best interests of all our children.