Freedom of Information Center of Armenia.

"Freedom of press: the right to know" is the theme of an OSCE-supported photo exhibition that opened in Yerevan today to mark World Press Freedom Day.

The one-week exhibition is organized by the Freedom of Information Centre of Armenia non-governmental organization in co-operation with the OSCE Office in Yerevan and the UN Department of Public Information, and funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID). It features more than 30 images selected from 300 photos submitted for the event; all photos included in the exhibition will be published in a catalogue.

The Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan, Ambassador Sergey Kapinos, welcomed the exhibition as a creative way to show public perceptions about freedom of information and expression.

"Free access to information is key to the respect of human dignity and enables citizens to take an active part in public life and exercise their other human rights. This exhibition is a good opportunity to highlight these issues and stimulate discussion," he said.

The opening of the exhibition was attended by journalists, representatives of state institutions and civil society.

The President of the Freedom of Information Centre, Shushan Doydoyan, said: "This is a special exhibition since everyone, journalists and professional photographers in particular, were invited to present their images illustrating freedom of information and freedom of expression. These basic rights are intrinsically linked to press freedom, which in turn contributes to strengthening democratization, good governance and human development."

By` www.osce.org