Evening star., 1951-03-19
u. 5. Delegate AssaiI.
Blows at Free Press
Under Name ofU. n.
By the Associated Press

erful bloc of "restrictionists" is
Threatening to strike a successful
blow at freedom of information
in the name of the United Ma
ltions, Carroll Binder, American
delegate in u N. drafting COM
mittee, charged yesterday.
If this bloc has it's way Ameri-
can magazines no longer will be
permitted to publish a picture of
IMohammed and mention of King
Farouk's love life will become ver-
boten." Mr.. Binder writes in the
new issue of the Saturday Review
'of Literature.
The press also would be pre-
vented from reporting "the con-
centration of troops on the border
Iof YugoSlavia, the creation of
armed forces in East Germany or
the existence of ITS Soviet divi-
Isions on active service.
Mr.. Binder, editorial page editor
Iof the Minneapolis Tribune, was
one of a committee of Is national
delegates who met at Lake Success
for three weeks in February at
tempting to draft a 19-article con-
|vention on freedom of informa-
ton.
Opposed to Final Proposal.
The United States delegate
stoutly opposed the draft that was
finally prepared for submission
to the Economic and Social Coun-
Gil which has been meeting in
Santiago. Chile, since February 20.
The council probably will not
decide until its next meeting at
Geneva this summer, after it has
received the written comments of
the so United Nations members,
whether to call an international
conference to write a final treaty.
What was intended to facili-
tate the gathering and transmits
sion of news has been transformed
into an effort to give the sanction
of international law to restrictions
upon such gathering and trans
mission Of news. Mr.. Binder
writes.
What was intended to extend
to other people the freedom to
seek. publish, and discuss infor-
nation enjoyed by this country
has been perverted into an at
tempt to discredit, circumscribe.
and if possible outlaw our free
practices"
Blocs Seek To Line Up Votes.
A bloc of Middle East, Asian,
Latin American and Cominform
countries, he said. believe that
they can line up a majority of the
go U. N. members so that the
final draft will incorporate pro-
visions barring false or distorted
which undermine friendly
relations between peoples and
states and Danish information
likely to injure the feelings of na-t
tionals of a State"
What makes the whole affair
so diabolic," he adds. 'is the
patina Of u. N, sanction that
would protect" such a restrictive
convention.
1t would permit governments to
restrict the movements of Ameri-
can rewsmen, censor dispatches
and protest against what is pub
lished in the United States with
out exposing themselves to accu-
sations of dictatorial suppression"
because they could cite a U. N.
convention ratified by the neces-
sary number of sovereign states.
Asian and Middle East nations,
representing nearly one-fourth Of
the U. N. membership, he said. al
lege that American newspapers
and other media of information
violate "our religious or national
sensibilities or offend our ma
tional prestige and dignity" They
want such abuses" outlawed.
They are reinforced by the
Cominform states. who charge
that the capitalist press uses it's
freedom to Islander other nations
and foster bad relations between
peoples and governments.
Many Latin American nations,
the editor says, line up with the
"restrictionists" because they feel
that their revolutions are falsely
exaggerated or because they dis
like the way their financial diff
culties have been reported.