HELSINKI DECLARATION

Public Relations Organizations

IPRA- International Public Relations Association

CERP- Confederation of Europeenne Des Relations Publiques

ICO- Representatives of Public Relations Consultants Association International Council Representatives

have passed the following requirements for quality and quality development in Public Relations Profession at World Public Relations Convention held at Helsinki on 1997:

1. Quality in Public relations can be defined and assessed as the total of all the characteristics and features of public relations services which has the power to meet specified and implied requirements in line with the accepted professional standards.

2. The Public Relations as a profession must be based on a common and wide information foundation, academic studies, researches, ethical principles and performance supervision. These characteristics complement each other and forms the corner of quality concept in the profession.

3. Every Public Relations employee-officers, consultants, teachers, researchers and students have to know the standards established for this profession by the community, clients and professionals. Consequently, all employees and consultants must aim for getting a quality certificate and use systems which shall make standard valuation, performance supervision and quality development permanent.

4. In order to achieve it, the organizations undersigned this document have formed IQPR-International Quality Public Relations Institute to conduct joint studies in the field of quality.

5. Both three organizations have approved and adopted by signing the minimum quality standards in public relations field determined and published by IQPR. These standards which shall continuously be updated must be taken by the Public Relations Employees as the fundamental rules of the profession.

6. This Declaration is the continuation of the cooperation among the organization which began joint recognition of Ethical Principles of 1961 and developed with joint preparation of the outlines of Public Relations Implementation Education in 1980.

7. Ethical principles, all principles and declarations including Venice/Lisbon and Rome Declarations previously accepted by IPRA, CERP and ICO for public relations employees in professional implementation and for the development of the profession shall continue to be in effect.

Helsinki, June 18, 1997

Roger Hayes                   Thomas Achelis                Peter Hehir
President                         President                         President
IPRA                                 CERP                               ICO