IRHR - News
APC trains participants in internet rights policy at the Hivos workshop “IG in the MENA Region”
At a workshop on internet governance in the MENA region, held from 16 to 19 March 2013 in Tunis, APC presented “IG and Policy: Anchoring and Safeguarding internet Openness in the Middle East and North Africa,” a workshop on civil society engagement in IG and public policy.
'Human rights and the internet' multimedia training kit released
APC presents a Multimedia training kit on human rights and the internet, a set of modules concerned with the relationship between human rights, information and communications technologies (ICTs) and the internet. These modules can be used freely to help those who work on human rights and ICTs to understand how the internet is affecting the protection of rights.
On International Sex Worker Rights Day, sign our petition to the UN
This Sunday, 3 March 2012, is International Sex Worker Rights Day. As part of an ongoing campaign, APC’s projects Internet Rights are Human Rights and Take Back the Tech! are circulating a petition to protect sex workers’ rights that we will send to the UN this month. Sign it today!
Red light to cybercrime law in the Philippines
On February 5, 2013 the Philippines Supreme Court extended until further notice the temporary restraining order issued on the implementation of the controversial Republic Act 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012. This sets a milestone for organisations and individuals advocating for internet rights.
New: Update on freedom of expression progress for 10 countries
The 2012 update on action steps for selected countries of GISWatch 2011 looks back at progress in freedom of expression and association for 10 countries: Jamaica, Rwanda, Lebanon, Romania, Indonesia, Cameroon, Argentina, Brazil, India and Nigeria.
Azerbaijan: Prominent blogger, journalist and human rights defenders arrested
Just months after the Internet Governance Forum, hundreds of people have demonstrated in Azerbaijan’s capital to express solidarity with recent protests in the central town of Ismayilli and denounce heavy police brutality. Some 40 participants were detained, including prominent blogger Emin Milli, investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova and human rights defenders.
New paper from APC and the Internet Society connects internet protocols and human rights
“Like Internet protocols, human rights standards attempt to articulate principles that will apply universally over time, as ideas and conditions evolve,” a new paper argues. Commissioned by the Association for Progressive Communications and the Internet Society, the issue paper released today compares the standards-making processes as well as the principles underlying human rights on the one hand and Internet protocols on the other.
Open Letter: Civil society hampered in its ability to contribute to WCIT
In an Open Letter put out during the World Conference on International Telecommunications, civil society groups call on the the ITU’s Secretary General and the conference Chairman to address three immediate and pressing matters: the lack of any official standing to the public comments by civil society; the lack of access to and transparency of working groups, particularly the working groups of Committee 5 (the review committee); and the absence of mechanisms to encourage independent civil society participation.
South African ISPs squeezed by newly proposed legislation
South Africa is one of several countries that possesses a “notice and take down regime” for online content, meaning that internet service providers are obliged to take down content that is deemed controversial by a complainant. Understanding this regime as unconstitutional since its inception in 2002, an attorney in Johannesburg has embarked on crusade to change it.
Online and offline sex worker rights are human rights
APC’s Connect Your Rights campaign is teaming up with the global campaign Take Back The Tech – fighting violence against women – on its 12th day of action (from 16). We are offering three stories to make the case for urgent action on sex worker rights, online and offline. Read more and be sure to sign our petition.
Uganda anti homosexuality bill boomeranging back on the web
Do you remember the culture jamming actions against official websites in Uganda last August? Anonymous activists managed to modify content on presidential and governmental websites in a way that showed the government as apologizing to the Ugandan LGBT community for repeated persecution of gays and lesbians. Just a few months later, Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill is there again and it could be passed into law imminently.
Statement of the WHRD International Coalition on Women Human Rights Defenders Day
On the occasion of November 29th, Women Human Rights Defenders Day, the Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition stands in solidarity with the hundreds of thousands of women activists around the world who – with exemplary courage, determination, and strength, uphold women’s human rights, the rights of communities, and of the environment.
Syria's internet shutdown violates international human rights law
At 10:26 UTC on November 29th, Syria’s international internet connectivity was shut down. APC strongly condemns this shut down, which threatens the safety and security of the Syrian people, and clearly violates international human rights law.
Take Back the Tech! 16 days x 16 stories. Tell. Listen. Act
Take Back the Tech! From 25 Nov to 10 Dec, take part in the 16 days of activism and take control of technology to tell, listen and share transformative stories. Document, inspire, converse and collectively envision the end to violence against women.
Landmark report on women’s rights on the internet
Women may not have been an active part of policy-making conversations when internet governance started, but the rapid pace of change online means they need to participate now to ensure that the future of the internet is shaped taking into account women’s rights. Read a report about “Women’s Rights on the Internet” on UNICEF’s The World We Want 2015 platform.
For a feminist view on the IGF
The 7th Internet Governance Forum (IGF) just drew to a close. Many views and analyses were published, most of them adopting a technical point of view. If you are interested in a slightly different take on the world’s most important internet governance encounter, consider reading up on GenderIT.org’s reports on gender peripheries of the IGF…
Joy Liddicoat of APC connects the dots between human rights and internet governance
In edition 4 of the MIND magazine, which questions human rights in internet governance, Joy Liddicoat of the Association for Progressive Communications makes the point that freedom of expression only takes its full force for democratic change when we can exercise it together with all of our other rights and freedoms. She argues that human rights must be a main focus of all discussions at the IGF.
Women human rights defenders and digital security: Reflections with a Latin American accent
A survey of women human rights defenders (WHRDs) conducted as part of APC’s Connect Your Rights! campaign revealed some interesting practices and perceptions in terms of their use of information and communications technologies in their work. Read an analysis.
APC in solidarity with the Open Letter of the 'Expression Online Initiative' at the 7th IGF
APC stands in solidarity with the Expression Online Initiative, which expressed serious concerns regarding violations of UN principles currently taking place at the 7th annual Internet Governance Forum in Baku, Azerbaijan. The violations include restrictions on freedom of expression and association and failure to guarantee equal rights for every participant. Read Expression Online’s open letter.
Human Rights and Internet Protocols: Comparing Processes and Principles
The Internet Society and APC are working on a paper which explores human rights and internet protocols, comparing the processes for their making and the principles by which they operate. The draft document takes a look at the parallels and differences between the open internet model of development and the exercise of human rights online, with the objective to foster discussions between the respective communities to advance an open human rights-fostering internet.
