IMPACT OF ICT ON CULTURAL VALUES TO BE DISCUSSED AT ITU

From Hafizah Kamaruddin

GUADALAJARA (Mexico), Oct 5 (Bernama) -- The impact of the information
technology on cultural values is among the key issues to be raised by Malaysia
at the 18th International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Plenipotentiary
Conference, which began here Monday.

Information Communication and Culture Minister Dr Rais Yatim said Malaysia
would also raise the issue on cyber crime and invasion of individual privacy at
the conference attended by more than 2,000 people from more than 160 countries.

He said he would also highlight the legal aspects, including whether the
existing local regulations could tackle cyber crime without assistance from
international resources.

"These are some of the issues that we should highlight and we hope to
receive support from the members," he told Malaysian journalists after the
official opening of the conference by Mexican President Felipe Calderon at the
Guadalajara Expo Centre, here.

Rais is expected to speak at the plenary session on Tuesday morning.

The conference, held once in four years, will conclude on Oct 22 which will
also see the election of members of the ITU Supreme Council and the Radio
Regulations Board (RRB).

ITU's Plenipotentiary is the quadrennial global conference that decides
strategy for ITU, the UN agency for ICTs responsible for allocating global radio
spectrum, creating the technical standards that fuel all ICT networks, and
developing and implementing strategies to bridge the 'digital divide'.

The election of the Union's five top executives, along with the members of
the Radio Regulations Board and the Member States which will comprise ITU
Council for the four-year period until the next Plenipotentiary, will take place
from Thursday.

It will begin with the election of the Secretary-General and Deputy
Secretary-General, and then the Directors of the three specialised arms of the
Union: the Radiocommunication Bureau, the Telecommunication Standardization
Bureau and the Telecommunication Development Bureau. There are 21 candidates for
the 12 seats on the Radio Regulations Board, and 65 candidate countries for
seats on ITU Council.

The number of Council seats is likely to increase at this conference, as
there are several proposals on the table from ITU Member States.

The accession of Timor Leste as a new ITU Member in August 2010 has brought
the total number of ITU Member States to 192.

Malaysia, which was elected into the UTI Supreme Council for the past three
terms to represent Region E namely Asia and Australasia, will defend its seat.

Similarly in the RBB, Malaysia, which is represented by Dr Ali Ebardi, was
elected for the first time at the last conference in Turkey in 2006, and will
defend its seat.

Ali, who is also Measat senior Vice-President of Space Systems Development,
is also the RBB Chairman. Measat is a Malaysian communications satellite
operator.


On the election, Rais said it would not be an issue if Malaysia failed to
make it into the ITU Supreme Council because it had held the seat for quite some
time.

In fact, Malaysia would continue to champion the issue on information
technology.

Among other things, the conference this time would discuss ITU's strategic
and financial plans for 2012-2015; "cybersecurity; strategies to help advance
ITU's goal of 'broadband inclusion for all', new Internet addressing systems
such as IPv6, the scope of the forthcoming review of the International
Telecommunication Regulations.

The topic on enhancing the use of ICTs in mitigating climate change and
delivering emergency communication in the wake of natural disasters will also be
discussed.

This year's conference will, for the first time, also include four exciting
side event sessions featuring debates between experts from government and
industry to discss the issues of Roadblocks to 'broadband inclusion for all',
"Enabling a low-carbon future: the key role of ICTs to address climate change","
Accessible ICTs for persons with disabilities" and "Cybersecurity."
-- BERNAMA