Vatican and Holy See stress on service of Digital technology for common good

Vatican delegation and the Holy See’s International representative highlighted the service of digital technology for the common good at the UN “Plenipotentiary Conference” held in Bucharest, Romania, from September 26 to October 14.

Sister Raffaella Petrini and Father Lucio Adrian Ruiz emphasized that the development of digital technology in communications must pursue the common good of citizens and truly listen to their needs, by echoing Pope Francis’ words, “listening is the first indispensable ingredient of dialogue and good communication”.

Sister Petrini is serving as the Secretary General of the Governorate and head of the Vatican delegation and Father Ruiz is Secretary of the Dicastery for Communication.

Quoting Pope Francis’ words about promoting effective communication platforms for social cohesion and solidarity, Sr. Petrini stressed developing the platforms to be accessible to all concerning human rights, cultural sensitivities, and traditions, with particular attention to women, young people, and people with disabilities.

Father Ruiz spoke about the challenges and risks of innovation in the age of digital communication and global interconnection to the secular and technical spheres such as the International Telecommunications Conference.

“Sustainability, inclusiveness, development and new opportunities in the field of technology, guided by fundamental principles such as respect for human life, the dignity of work and care for our common home,” Father Ruiz said.

Father Ruiz presented the Holy See’s principles to the challenges and risks in which the Holy See can play a decisive role in the third millennium’s digital transformation.

He emphasized the centrality of the human person, of relationships, of the need to include existential peripheries, and protect the most vulnerable persons of children, adolescents, and the elderly.

The UN “Plenipotentiary Conference” is the supreme decision-making body of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

The conference is held every four years to define the organization’s general policies and to determine its ability to influence the development of information and communication technologies on a global level.  

Vatican City State is one of the 193 member countries.

Over 3000 delegates including government ministers from 183 of ITU’s 193 member countries together with other members of public and private companies, academic institutions, and international telecommunications organizations participated in this quadrennial conference. - With inputs from Vatican News and www.itu.int