The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Council has chosen "Telecommunication and Humanitarian Assistance" as the theme for 1997 World Telecommunication Day (WTD-97), a theme lying at the very heart of Amateur Radio. World Telecommunication Day takes place each year on the anniversary of the creation of the ITU, May 17, 1865.
A specialized agency of the United Nations, the ITU has the vital role of overseeing the division of the range of radio spectrum for the entire world. Based on the demonstrated or perceived needs of different services, which include broadcast, maritime, aeronautical, amateur and others, member-nations of the ITU decide which radio services will be allocated which bands of frequencies. Once that's done, the regulators for each country take over to write domestic regulations in accordance with ITU international agreements.
Amateur Radio is expected to be featured in a special telecommunications center designed to commemorate the event, to be located in front of the ITU Headquarters building, at the Place des Nations, in Geneva, Switzerland. It is expected that special event station operators will use the call sign 4U1ITU, which is the call of the ITU Headquarters club station.
ARRL International Affairs Vice President and IARU Secretary Larry Price, W4RA, and Technical Relations Manager Paul Rinaldo, W4RI, will be in Geneva for other meetings and are planning to represent ARRL and IARU in person. It is further anticipated that ARRL will arrange a schedule with the Geneva special event station to convey a commemorative message from ARRL/IARU. (IARU is a Sector Member of the ITU. ARRL is the International Secretariat of the IARU). US groups involved in emergency communication programs such as ARES and RACES would also be invited to contact and exchange messages with the station.
Other planned activities and demonstrations in Geneva include live videoconferencing (possibly with relief workers at the site of operations in Rwanda and/or Burundi), satellite equipment (provided and operated by commercial suppliers), and VHF and HF mobile equipment. Videos, including a program currently in production on telecommunication in the Rwanda and Burundi operations, will be shown.
The ARRL Letter Online
Volume 16, Number 13 (March 28, 1997)
Page author: elindquist@arrl.org
Page last revised 2:11 PM ET 3/27/97
Address Changes: Kathy Capodicasa, N1GZO,
e-mail kcapodicasa@arrl.org.
Editorial: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, e-mail elindquist@arrl.org.