Meeting between Ségolène Royal and Richard Stallman
Paris, June 28, 2006
Ségolène Royal met today with Richard Stallman, as he is was making a stopover in Paris. Their meeting dealt with the importance of software in all social, cultural and economic activities in the world of today.
Free software has already deeply transformed the way we work, learn and live. As a matter of facts, Internet depends, essentially, on Free Software. All computer and internet users are currently using Free Software on their computers (browsers, office packages, etc.) or are relying on free software on the Internet (often unknowingly ).
Ségolène Royal and Richard Stallman agreed on the paramount character of the four fundamental freedoms which constitute the foundations of Free Software:
freedom to run the program, for all uses
freedom to study and to improve the program
freedom to redistribute copies
freedom to publish its improved versions
Open standards (like the Open Document Format) and the use of Free Software contribute to the independence, quality and effectiveness of public agencies and local communities. Developments funded by public authorities for their own needs should be free, as a general rule.
Public authorities, in France and Europe, should promote a legal framework which favors freedom to use software and participation of all users in innovation.
Policies for research and technological innovation in computing could benefit by using concepts originating from Free Software.
The educational system must teach digital literacy. This education should be based on Free Software.
Beyond software, public authorities must promote the "information commons " in all fields of science. They call for implementation of the Berlin declaration and the recommendations of the World Summit of the Information Society (WSIS) in regards to Open Access to scientific information.
While giving a privileged legal status to digital restrictions (DRM), the bill "copyrights and related rights in the information society" (DADVSI) is going in the wrong direction. It will be thus necessary to re-examin from scratch the legal framework created by the DADVSI law at the French level and to contribute to the development of an European and international legal framework more favorable to the circulation of works and knowledge.
Ségolène Royal Richard Stallman
About
Richard Stallman :
Richard Stallman is the founder of the Free Software movement. A computer scientist at MIT. he announced in 1983 the development of a free operating system named GNU. Shortly after, he created the Free Software Foundation (FSF). In 1985, Stallman published the GNU Manifesto, which stated the motivations and the objectives of the project and called for support from the world computing community
http://fsf.org http://fsffrance.org
Ségolène Royal
Ségolène Royal is a prominent French politician and a member of the Socialist Party.
She is the president of the Poitou-Charentes region and deputy of the Deux-Sèvres département.
http://www.assemblee-nationale.com/12/tribun/fiches_id/2650.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A9gol%C3%A8ne_Royal
The Berlin Declaration
The Berlin conference of Berlin on Open Access to knowledge in sciences and humanities concluded by drafting a Declaration in support of the international movement in favor of Open Access to scientific journals and archives.
http://www.zim.mpg.de/openaccess-berlin/berlindeclaration.html
WSIS Declaration of Principles and Action Plan