|  What
is multilingualism all about
The word ¡°multilingualism¡± in its purest nature means application
and involvement of numerous languages. The way we are basically
applying this arguably ambiguous word is in the sense of practical
application and integration of the usage of number of languages
with wide and fair representation of the world and also without
any presupposition of one superior language for the Internet.
Why
is multilingualism important
It about two things in a large picture: Culture Preservation and
Human Element.
[I am going to write about the speeches of the WSIS Tunis Opening
Ceremony where the Swiss Federation and Utsumi highlighted the need
to keepsake culture preservation and the need to consider the human
element through Internet.]
History
behind multilingualism
The word ¡°multilingualism¡± in its purest nature means application
and involvement of numerous languages. The way we are basically
applying this arguably ambiguous word is in the sense of practical
application and integration of the usage of number of languages
with wide and fair representation of the world and also without
any presupposition of one superior language for the Internet.
How
multilingualism became a buzz
If you take the view that Internet truly belongs to everyone, then
it is obvious why so many inter-governmental organizations and the
states are shouting for multilingual Internet. In particular, the
United Nations and its suborganization began to show strong views
on the concept of multilingualism.
After the first World Summit of Information Society in Geneva,
back in 2003, a gathering designed by the United Nations' International
Telecommunication Union, the WSIS declaration underlined the importance
of multilingualism in its Declaration of Principles, ¡°[The International
Coordination to provide global platform and to govern underlying
technical resources] should ensure an equitable distribution of
resources, facilitate access for all and ensure a stable and secure
functioning of the Internet, taking into account multilingualism¡±
(Insert at discretion) in Para 44.
Moreover, at the mandate of the UN Secretary-General, a Working
Group of Internet Governance was formed to play the role of advisory
committee for Mr. Kofi Anan.
In its final report, the WGIG has stated that ¡°s trengthening
participation and coordination of all governments and all stakeholders
in the governance process is required to push forward the development
and implementation of MNS solutions including multilingual email
addresses and key word lookup .¡± (Report of the WGIG, Chateau
de Bossey, 6.18.05)
Lastly and perhaps most substantially, UNESCO, among other organizations
is uniting its effort to push forth its obvious interest in the subject
of multilingual content of the World Wide Web. So important, that
it has published a position paper on the subject matter. Significantly,
UNESCO pointed out that the current language of Internet used on the
Web is not those most widely spoken the language. |
