Human Rights Council

This submission was produced in response to the call by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights for input to a report on internet shutdowns and human rights that will be presented to the 50th session of the Human Rights Council in June 2022.

In this open letter to the incoming president of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), APC and other organisations take the opportunity to voice a series of recommendations to ensure effective civil society participation in the upcoming 16th cycle of the HRC.

A group of more than 140 members of the multistakeholder community have signed a letter addressed to Ambassador Burhan Gafoor, Chair of the UN OEWG, about multistakeholder participation in the upcoming sessions.

We want people, especially those facing discrimination and oppression, to have greater power and autonomy through digital technologies to exercise their full range of human rights online and offline. Check out our achievements in this area in 2020.

This publication tells a story of collective adaptation and resilience, closeness and collaboration, care and connections, of a growing community navigating change.  

AI technologies, are still in their infancy, so there is still enormous potential to channel AI to address global challenges – but also much concern regarding its effects on social justice and the enjoyment of human rights. 

Technology-facilitated violence must be understood in light of its impact on lives and livelihoods. Human security is at the heart of cyber security and therefore demands human-centric and rights-based approaches to establishing a peaceful ICT environment.

The 48th Session of the Human Rights Council was held from 13 September to 8 October 2021. The HRC remains a key space for APC to raise concerns about threats and challenges to human rights online.