President,
Norway would like to thank the Special Rapporteur for Cultural Rights, for her report and statement here today. We support the way in which she implements her mandate.
As this is the last time the Special Rapporteur is presenting her report to the Council, Norway would like to take this opportunity to thank Ms Shaheed for her important work, and for having taken the historical position as the very first special rapporteur on cultural rights.
This year’s report addresses copyright policy from the perspective of right to cultural participation and the right to enjoy benefits of scientific progress.
This perspective, which emphasizes human knowledge as a global public good rather than an individual good, represents an opposition to the individual property rights - at least in the way we know it from our country.
In as much as we appreciate different perspectives in relation to copyrights, Norway believes that there is a need to promote the artists’ right to protection and recognition of their work, both as an artistic property and as a means of income.
We would appreciate to hear the Special Rapporteur’s views on to what extent the recommendations in the report link up to work in the World Intellectual Property Organisation and UNESCO.
We also thank the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography for her report and statement here today. Norway welcomes the visions and methods of work for the implementation of your mandate as outlined in your report. The thematic study on the issue of information and communication technologies and the sale and sexual exploitation of children is highly relevant. We are deeply concerned about the emerging threats relating to online streaming of child abuse. We would appreciate to hear the views of the Special Rapporteur on how to effectively combat these threats.
I thank you.