Maldives: Freedom of expression and the media, telecommunications and IT sectors

On 6 May 2009, International Media Support (IMS) hosted a meeting of key international organisations to look into the application of Freedom of Expres- sion (FoE) principles to Digital Communications Environments (DCEs). Organisations participating at this meeting included ARTICLE 19, Freedom House, Global Partners, ict Development Associates, Open Society Institute, UNDP, wire.less.dk and IMS.

The participants at the meeting agreed on the relevance of applying FoE principles to evolving DCEs with the aim of influencing the creation of transparent and accessible information and new media landscapes. In pursuit of this, a country-specific partnership approach was agreed, which would bring together actors encompassing a broad base of expertise in the FoE and DCE fields. This partnership would seek to work together on advocacy, policy and programme activities with government, civil society and the private sector in the individual countries.