The freedom to read

“The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can’t read them.” – Mark Twain

Next month is National Book Development Month, as specified by Republic Act No. 8047. How important are books? We quote Clarence Day: “The world of books is the most remarkable creation of man. Nothing else that he builds ever lasts. Monuments fall, nations perish, civilizations grow old and die out and after an era of darkness new races build others. But in the world of books are volumes that have seen this happen again and again and yet live on, still young, as fresh as the day they were written, still tell of hearts of men centuries dead.”

Ignorance is a form of slavery. Wisdom begins with an awareness of ignorance. And although it is a fact that education is costly, ignorance is the only thing that is even costlier than education. And education is still the cheapest defense of any nation. It is a better defense than any army. Education should teach us not only how to work for a living, but how to live so that we will be of service to the country and our fellowmen. In short, education should not merely be teaching people what they do not know, but more important give their lives purpose and meaning. The primary tool of education is books. And not just text books, but any book or printed material, no matter great or small, is important. There is a saying that knowledge is power. Knowledge is found in books, of any type.

In 1950, the Florence Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Materials was developed and approved by the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) in Florence, Italy. The UNESCO was formed after World War II. In its constitution it was tasked to, “collaborate in the work of advancing mutual knowledge and understanding of peoples (…) and to that end recommend such international agreement as may be necessary to promote the free flow of ideas by word and image.” Their major tool was the Florence Agreement. The goal of the agreement was to encourage the free exchange of materials across national borders. This includes books, manuscripts, newspapers and periodicals; essentially, any and all printed and visual materials (including artwork). This was a landmark international treaty. It proved that across borders in every nation, education is important.

We are a global village. Part of being a global village is the free exchange of ideas, information, thoughts and philosophies. The ease with which we can read the latest bestseller from the United States, or read the latest news in The International Herald Tribune is thanks to the Florence Agreement. Over 100 countries became signatories, including the Philippines. At no point in our history (even during the Marcos Regime) has there been an attempt to circumvent the Florence Agreement. To do so, we fear, will further undermine our education system. Ignorance is something to be eradicated, not encouraged.

It is a proven fact that reading to children and exposing them to books at a young age is good. It helps improve their mental acuity and develops their language skills and vocabulary at a young age. Children must be exposed to good books. They learn to read by being in an atmosphere of books. You do not only learn from textbooks. If this were true, there would be no point in people reading Noli Mi Tangere or El Filibusterismo. In history, stories were the medium for education. Epics, such as Homer’s The Iliad and The Odyssey, were used to teach morality and values. Jesus Christ did not teach through lecture, but by telling parables and stories to illustrate his points. Aesop’s Fables taught life lessons through story.

In the Philippines, we hope that the government develops programs to encourage reading from a young age. An important aspect is making sure that books from around the world are easily and cheaply available to the Filipino. They should build on the Florence Agreement, an agreement that the Philippines has been a signatory of for over 50 years. Our greatest enemy is ignorance. The only thing that can defeat ignorance is education. Reading is fundamental.