Freedom of expression: a driver of other freedoms and human rights.
Four fundamental freedoms are outlined in the Preamble of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights : freedom of speech, freedom of belief, freedom from fear, and freedom from want. It is not incidental that freedom of speech comes first: this fundamental freedom is one that enables all others. In the Universal Declaration, freedom of opinion and expression has been further detailed in Article 19 as the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. In the 75 years since the adoption of the Universal Declaration, the right to freedom of expression has been further affirmed and enshrined in numerous international instruments; the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights , the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child , and the 2006 Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities , among many other global and regional standards. While all human rights are universal, interdependent, indivisibl...