Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, states that:
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
Thomas I. Emerson .....argued that freedom of speech helps to provide a balance between stability and change. Freedom of speech acts as a "safety valve" to let off steam when people might otherwise be bent on revolution...... "
The principle of open discussion is a method of achieving a more adaptable and at the same time more stable community, of maintaining the precarious balance between healthy cleavage and necessary consensus."...... "Opposition serves a vital social function in
offsetting or ameliorating (the) normal process of
bureaucratic decay
Research undertaken by the Worldwide Governance Indicators project at the
World Bank, indicates that
freedom of speech, and the process of
accountability that follows it, have a significant impact in the quality of governance of a country. "Voice and Accountability" within a country, defined as "the extent to which a country's citizens are able to participate in selecting their government, as well as freedom of expression, freedom of association, and free media" is one of the six dimensions of governance that the Worldwide Governance Indicators measure .......it is important that development agencies create grounds for effective support for a free press in developing countries
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_speech#cite_note-13