Pekka Tarjanne, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), told the Conference News Daily he had come to the annual meeting of the PTC, which draws its membership among government and industry leaders from 55 nations, to deliver a "blunt" message about the growing divide between the information "haves" and "have-nots". The Orwellian factor, he said, was lurking for those not careful enough.

"Mankind is not going to survive unless the UN, the G-8, the Group of 77, the World Economic Forum, the World Bank and the rest of the decision makers are really concerned and concentrating on the bridging of the digital divide," Tarjanne said. "The problems are well known, the solutions as well. There is enough capital available. There is also a lot of political goodwill and understanding – but, so far, no enough."

Tarjanne, a former member of parliament in his native Finland who served as minister of transport and communications for three years during the 1970s, has been has been secretary-general of the ITU since 1989. His audience in Honolulu this week included not only representatives of governments in the Asia-Pacific region, but also hundreds of directors of some of the world's leading telephone, computer, satellite and related communications companies.

Why, he asked, should it be more expensive to call North Africa or a neighboring French village from Geneva, than Hawaii? Why is the whole national communications network in one of West Africa's most successful economies, Cote d'Ivoire, capable of carrying less, and therefore slower, computer and telephone communications traffic than the single line available to a teenager with a computer in New York or London? Why should a local mobile telephone call cost double in South Africa or three times the price in Zambia of a similar call placed in Helsinki? He said poorer people are paying more for their communications and their communications equipment than people in the developed world.

"Information and communication technology (ICT) has for years been looked upon as the gate to paradise, in particular for the developing countries. ICT is energy saving, non-polluting and ecologically correct. ICT increases efficiency and decreases costs. It is good for equality and decentralization. It cuts across the board as a tool for a better life – e-health, e-education, e-commerce, e-governance," Tarjanne said.

However, as the ICT sector grows into the most significant part of the global economy, the companies and governments had to look at the risks threats and dangers of the "fast-forward" movement. They had to think of the implications for their children and grandchildren.

"We all know that ICT accelerated the fall of the Berlin Wall. We all know that ICT can increase interactivity and pave the way to a real global village. But, ITC can also be used by dictators to control their citizens and make their lives miserable," Tarjanne said.

"George Orwell's 1984 was a good book half a century ago. Fortunately, its vision has not been seen in real life except in some isolated countries. The risks are, however, always there. The Big Brother hides around the corner and will attack if we are not alert enough," he said. "This is true all over the world, even among the champions of democracy."

He publicly cited China for the ruling Communist Party's attempts to police perceived electronic dissidence. The high cost of telephone calls in many developing nations, he added, are attributable to combination of government corruption and poor governance. The industry had to do more to fight cyber crime; it had to do more research to ensure that mobile telephones do not fry our brains; and above all it had to ensure fair access of ITC education across the world, and make sure at the same time that children grow up with a sense of what is right and what is wrong.

According to recent ITU statistics, 72 countries have now made commitments under the basic telecommunications agreement to progressively liberalize their telecommunication markets.

In 1996, the value of revenue from public international telecommunications traffic was just over 10 per cent of a total global market of $ 670 billion. As a result of the basic telecommunications agreement, together with other trends towards globalization, technological change, market liberalization and foreign ownership, Tarzana said that percentage was expected to increase considerably, perhaps reaching 15-20 per cent by the early years of the next century.

As a result of the changes that took place at the start of this year, notably within the 15 Member States of the European Union, some three-quarters of all international telephone traffic is now provided under competitive market conditions compared with just 35 per cent in 1990. As a result of commitments already made, that percentage will increase to a minimum of 85 per cent by the year 2005.

Since the start of 1996, more than 35 independent telecommunications regulatory agencies have been established around the world. Under their commitments to the basic international telecommunications agreement, countries have indicated the level of foreign ownership they are willing to permit.

PTC officials in Honolulu said this was already bearing fruit as investors around the world have identified the telecommunications sector as a sound investment. Private capital being invested in privatization opportunities and in infrastructure development now far outweighs public money.

In 1997 alone, according to the ITU statistics, more than US$ 45 billion was invested in 16 separate privatizations of public telecommunication operators, all of which involved a significant component of foreign capital.