E-LISInformation freedom in a Democratic World and the role of Librarians in cyber eraJ. K.VijayakumarauthorManjuVijayakumarauthorIn this article, Democracy and the role of libraries in society, Intellectual freedom and Libraries, Democracy and the professional librarian, Information society in cyber world etc are discussed in detail. The right of access to information and ideas is vital for any society. We know, freedom, prosperity and the development of society depend on education as well as on unrestricted access to knowledge, thought culture and information. Democracy, a government of the people by the people and for the people is widely acclaimed as the most suitable model of governance in the world. According to Kofi Annan, the UN secretary General, as he stated once, “If information and knowledge are central to democracy, they are the conditions for development”. At a crucial time like this, when libraries are facing decreasing resources and competition from other agencies and technologies, there is an urgent need for vocal public support for the service they provide. There is need, therefore, for an effective lobby to communicate the value of libraries and the profession to politicians, the media and others who can influence public opinion. Libraries have always been a cornerstone in building that society, which ensures those citizens, has access to information so that they can gain the knowledge to govern themselves. A commitment to intellectual freedom or right to information is a core responsibility for the library and information profession.ED. Intellectual property: author's rights, ownership, copyright, copyleft.EE. Intellectual freedom.EF. Censorship.BD. Information society.2000Sarada Ranganathan Endowmnet for Library Sceince (SRELS), BangaloreConference Paper

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