News: Internet governance
Why the Stop Online Piracy Act might pass -- and why it shouldn't
The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is being debated in the US House of Representatives today. Wildly unpopular, this bill is the latest in a series of extreme and reactionary legislation that seek a heavy-handed approach to dealing with copyright infringement online. If passed, SOPA would grant broad powers to censor and restrict content on the Internet.
APC reviews the 2011 IGF
“There were very strong human rights themes across the main sessions, particularly around freedom of expression and freedom of association. However it is time for human rights to be the principal theme of the Seventh IGF,” says APC as the world’s oldest progressive network reflects on the progress of the UN conference on how the internet is run.
APC's Joy Liddicoat to advise on critical internet governance issues
APC is proud to announce that Joy Liddicoat has just been elected for a two-year term to the Generic Names Supporting Organisation (GNSO) Council. This council is one of the key venues through which civil society can voice its opinions and effect internet governance policy.
Let's get spectrum right: It's time to start making use of TV white spaces
The use and management of spectrum was raised repeatedly during the IGF with many seeing digital migration and TV white spaces as an exciting opportunity for bridging the access gap. A number of recommendations came out of an APC workshop on spectrum for development as APC schedules a white spaces workshop in Joburg this week.
Issue papers for Southern African IGF good preparation for Nairobi
New issue papers on cloud computing, mobile phones, privacy and security, critical internet resources, and access and diversity are a good introduction to some of the issues upcoming at the Sixth Internet Governance Forum.
Dot.Africa? First Southern African IGF starts Sept 1
On September 1-3 the first ever Southern African Internet Governance Forum kicks off in Johannesburg in preparation for the global UN internet forum to be held in Kenya.
London Riots: Social media does not cause social problems say APC and GreenNet
Following last week’s riots, British PM David Cameron said that his government is considering a crackdown on online communications. However he forgets that the same websites and phone networks were also used to locate friends and plan safe exits from trouble-spots. APC and GreenNet issue a statement.
Internet governance in Latin America and the Caribbean: Remote participation
From August 9-11 APC is at this regional meeting in Trinidad and Tobago. You can also participate from wherever you are.
Internet Governance Forum 2011: Pre-event on access as a right
APC and partners are hosting a pre-event on access to the internet from a human rights perspective on Monday September 26 at the sixth Internet Governance Forum in Nairobi, Kenya.
APC at the Sixth Internet Governance Forum
APC members and staff will be participating at this year’s Internet Governance Forum in Nairobi, Kenya from 27-30 September 2011. The proposed theme is ‘Internet as a catalyst for change: access, development, freedoms and innovation’ and so APC will be hosting a number of workshops as well as a pre-event based on the themes of access, human rights, and development.
Dear Librarian in Denver: Why are you filtering the internet?
Controlling what users can and can’t see on computers using filtering software is standard in US libraries. APC questions the Denver Public Library on their filtering policy and practices in a fictional exchange that tackles very real questions of freedom of information.
First Latin American and Caribbean convention of Internet Governance
The Fourth Regional Preparatory Meeting for the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) will take place from August 8th to 11th, 2011 in the city of Port Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. The event will be held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel.
Internet Rights are Human Rights, says APC at Human Rights Council
APC calls on the Human Rights Council to treat freedom of expression online as a human rights issue.
APC event at the UN Human Rights Council: Watch the video
As part of APC’s Connect your rights! Internet Rights are Human Rights campaign, APC is co-hosted a side-event at the Human Rights Council’s seventeenth session in Geneva on 3 June.
Human rights belong to people, not to networked computers
Former New Zealand human rights commissioner Joy Liddicoat has just joined APC to lead a new Internet Rights are Human Rights campaign. Although she is busy getting ready for Internet Governance Forum consultations on May 18-19, she took a few moments to talk to APCNews.
Women's rights and realities transformed by technology
Can information and communication technologies (ICTs) transform women’s realities? Undoubtedly, yes. This connection between ICTs and the advancement of women’s rights will be addressed during the 55th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) 22 February – 4 March in New York. The CSW is a global policy-making body of the United Nations dedicated to gender equality and the advancement of women. APC’s GenderIT.org has released a special edition that speaks directly to this year’s theme of the CSW: gender, education and technology. APC staff attending the CSW will provide live coverage from the session in GenderIT.org’s Feminist Talk section on the website, so stay tuned.
APC's conclusions on the fifth Internet Governance Forum – and recommendations for the future
On September 17 the fifth Internet Governance Forum (IGF) came to an end in Vilnius, Lithuania. The five-year UN-run annual event is a uniquely experimental and influential space on the road to guaranteeing open, universal and affordable internet and ICT access to all. However the continuity of the IGF is uncertain. Download and read our analysis of the most recent forum.
Blogging to tell it like it is: The IGF from a personal perspective
An unlikely, but real conversation that took place between a .xxx domain representative (which is exclusively for pornographic sites) and a feminist; the consequences of having a .gay domain; and thoughts about privacy on the internet from a victim of violence. These are some of the topics you can read about in the GenderIT.org blog from the APC team, that was blogging from the fifth Internet Governance Forum, the UN international arena to debate the internet.
A code to encourage citizen participation in how the internet is run
How can we get more citizens to participate more actively in the complex process of how the internet is run? While having accessible information about it is important, it is not enough. The institutions that work in internet governance must ensure that the information is accessible in a language and format that for those who are not specialists in the subject. APC and partners are developing a code of good practice to establish minimum standards to ensure transparency and information where internet governance is concerned. Photo by “Nirbaho”:http://www.flickr.com/photos/nirbhao/3378286018/sizes/m/
Gender in the IGF agenda
The “missing paragraph” of the IGF clauseIn a workshop organised by the APC’s women’s programme during this year’s Internet Governance Forum (IGF), one of the panellists took off his tie as he began to speak. As an unmistakeable element of IGF culture, the suits worn by government and corporate representatives are a subtle reflection of scant will to discuss issues that affect women from their perspective. The presence of young women activists in this year’s IGF from India, South Africa, Brazil and the Congo, tweeting and blogging with humour and enthusiasm about issues like security, freedom of speech, pornography, social rights and other IG issues presented at the forum, were a stark contrast to the presence of so many suit-clad, middle-aged men. Photo by
