For democracy, dialogue and development to thrive, we need an essential element: freedom of expression, a universal right that everyone should have. All human beings should have the right to freely express their opinions.
According to the United Nations (UN), freedom of expression is a human right enshrined in article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
- “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression.
- This right includes the right not to be disturbed by your opinions.
- To investigate and receive information and opinions.
- To disseminate them without boundary limitation by any means of expression.
- “.
The purpose of this article is to analyze this right recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and detailed in the Human Rights Committee Freedom of Expression is the basis of any democratic society.
Freedom of expression means that all human beings have the right to express themselves without being harassed; and everyone can access and transmit information without barriers.
Thus, this right is linked to freedom of the press, which we define as “the transmission of information by the media without the State exercising pre-broadcast control”.
Freedom of expression therefore protects
For real and effective freedom of expression, individuals must have the right to:
In addition, we should emphasize that freedom of expression also protects the right to conscientious objection when we speak, for example, of ideology considered official in legislation or with different obligations, such as military enlistment.
Antidemocratic regimes often threaten freedom of expression through the use of various censorship tools, defined as the use of power to control freedom of expression. Censorship can be explicit (dictated by law) or less obvious (for example, social taboos).
Thus, one of the most radical ways to restrict freedom of expression is prior censorship, censorship of certain content prior to publication.
The expression should not be pre-censored, although it may be regulated with subsequent responsibility: a person cannot be prevented from speaking out, even if he is punishable by his messages.
We see that the right to freedom is not an absolute right and that legislation can prohibit a person from inciting crime or violence, advocating discrimination and hatred, so freedom of expression is limited when it conflicts with the rights or values of others.
On this point, we must underline the difficulties of demarcating the border that separates legitimate and non-legitimate expression. Its objective is to protect the dignity and human rights of these limits with autocratic characteristics that seek to undermine our right to express ourselves freely.