Mr. Shigehiro Nishiumi, Deputy Representative of the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association Taipei Office, attended the opening ceremony of the second GCTF Workshop on Defending Democracy through Media Literacy.
The Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association co-hosted a GCTF workshop entitled “Defending Democracy through Media Literacy” with the American Institute in Taiwan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The opening ceremony was held on September 10th at the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. Mr. Shigehiro Nishiumi delivered the following address. He emphasized the importance of identifying information that is accurate and factually correct from the wealth of data sources available. This remains a fundamental tenet of democracy.
Foreign Minister Wu,
Chairman Su of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy,
Representative Jevrell of the Swedish Trade and Invest Council ,
Vice President Bryan of the National Democratic Institute,
Director Christensen of the American Institute in Taiwan,
Acting Assistant Secretary Busby,
Distinguished guests and friends,
Good morning.
On behalf of the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, I am honored to co-host this GCTF workshop on Media Literacy with the American Institute in Taiwan, the Swedish Trade and Invest Council, the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The rapid advance of social media means that individuals now have the power to disseminate information to a worldwide audience. Previously, only conventional media were able to do this. The premise of democracy is that voters can choose who governs them based on accurate information. Given the wealth of date sources available, it is vital that we are able to distinguish what is correct and accurate from what is factually incorrect and false. This is critical for democracy to function correctly.
On the other hand, placing restrictions on the dissemination of or access to data, simply as a way of filtering out inaccurate information, poses a potential threat to these democratic principles. There is an urgent need for constructive discussion on how best to ensure a society where individuals can make decisions and express opinions based on accurate information without imposing restrictions on their ability to access or transmit information themselves.
The GCTF, Global Cooperation and Training Framework, was launched by Taiwan and the US as a platform for the discussion of common issues on a cross-regional basis. This is the fourth occasion on which the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association has co-hosted a GCTF workshop. This in-depth discussion on the topic of “Media Literacy” with the United States and Taiwan, based on our shared values of freedom and democracy, is an invaluable initiative. We are delighted to participate and we remain committed to promoting the development of this critical platform.
I would like to close these remarks by extending my best wishes for the great success of this workshop.
Thank you for your attention.
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