Seoul (ANTARA) - Delegations of the 17th OANA General Assembly held in Seoul, South Korea, on November 6-9, 2019. (Yonhap)
The 17th General Assembly of the Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA) in Seoul, South Korea, on November 6-9, 2019, involving the participation of 29 regionwide news agencies, including Indonesia's ANTARA, yielded the Seoul Declaration.
Newly chosen president of OANA, Cho Sung-boo, who is CEO of South Korea's Yonhap News Agency, read out the five-point declaration in Seoul on Friday following the series of discussions conducted on the theme "The New Challenges for Journalism: Technological Innovations and Issues of Trust."
According to the first point, OANA members, as responsible media outlets, will make utmost efforts to thwart the spread of fake news and misinformation through rigorous fact-checking in order to earn and deserve public trust.
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The second point stipulates that OANA members will share experiences and expertise with one another in averting the distribution of fake news and misinformation in the joint efforts to safeguard integrity in journalism across the OANA region.
The third point defines that OANA members will cooperatively seek means to tap into technological advancements in the production and distribution of news and find ways to reach a wider audience within and outside the OANA region.
According to the fourth point, OANA members will make concerted efforts against digital piracy and other forms of violations of intellectual property rights and share information on any breaches made against OANA members.
The fifth point stated that OANA members, in reaffirming their commitment to peace and understanding among nations, back the Korean peace process based on confidence-building and placating tensions, and aspiring for such a process to contribute to peace in the Asia-Pacific region.
Apart from the declaration, all delegations attended the OANA General Assembly including ANTARA's News Director, Akhmad Munir, who in an acclamation agreed to a request proposed by Palestine's WAFA to become an observant member of OANA while also agreeing to the resignation of Afghan's Khabar.
Another approval made at the general assembly is a revision of the Articles of Association, paragraph 2, from "membership opens to all news agencies within UNESCO members in Asia-Pacific region" to "membership opens to all news agencies within United Nation members in Asia and Pacific."
It was added that by 2019, the membership is limited to only one news agency per country. However, since the time of its establishment on December 22, 1961, until present days, 43 news agencies from 35 countries have been members of OANA.
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