Declaration on International Affairs

The World Chiropractic Alliance holds:

1. The free exchange of ideas is essential to the growth and development of all professions.

2. Patients and practitioners have the right to free and unfettered access to information concerning health care decisions, while respecting patient confidentiality and intellectual property rights.

3. Individual chiropractors, chiropractic associations, and chiropractic educational institutions have the right to disseminate information through publications and educational programs throughout the world.

4. No chiropractic organization has the right to hold itself out as representing the profession as a whole internationally, or having exclusive authority to act on behalf of the chiropractic profession when dealing with governments or civil society.

5. Individual chiropractors, chiropractic associations, and chiropractic educational institutions engaged in activities involving other countries should respect the culture and unique needs of the people of that country.

6. The WCA acknowledges and accepts the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and on the issues enumerated above urges individual chiropractors, chiropractic associations, and chiropractic educational institutions to pay particular attention to the following Articles:

Article 19

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Article 20

(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

(2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.