The ASEA People’s Forum is holding its first ICTs related workshop co-organised by APC, EROTICS Indonesia, Women’s Legal and Human Rights Bureau, Inc, Myanmar ICT Development organization, and the Foundation for Media Alternatives. It will take place on 22 March in Myanmar, and will address issues such as freedom of expression, privacy, and women’s human rights in evolving digital information societies.

A strategising meeting for Beijing Platform for Action Section J was held on 13 March during this year’s CSW 58. The meeting was attended by representatives of APC, Isis International, Women and Media Collective, and Search for Common Ground, to plan for Beijing+20, emphasising Section J concerns, particularly the use of all media and ICTs to be seen as an issue that cuts across all the 12 critical areas of concern in the Beijing Platform.

As part of an NGO parallel event at CSW58, hosted by the Southern Africa Gender Protocol Alliance and Gender Links, Jan Moolman, Women’s Rights Programme project coordinator from APC, explains how important information and communication technologies and the media are in advancing gender equality and protecting women’s rights.

Join us on Thursday 27 March to discuss technology-related violence against women and the tensions that exist between combating hate speech versus the right to freedom of expression with Erika Smith from APC’s Women’s Rights Programme.

AWID, in collaboration with members of the Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition, has developed this publication in an effort to assess the various mechanisms developed to provide protection to WHRDs at risk, including initiatives developed by national governments and regional and international human rights bodies. The publication includes a specific section addressing digital security and freedom of expression issues.

In the second phase of the groundbreaking EROTICS project, an exploratory research project into sexuality and the internet, the Association for Progressive Communications and partners from India, Brazil and Indonesia, have launched a new website (http://erotics.apc.org) to reflect the project’s background, share knowledge and feature updates on the initiative.

Rural women trying to access ICTs in developing countries often face the double whammy of the digital divide and the constraints and restrictions imposed upon their gender. One of the solutions identified for bridging the digital divide for rural women has been consistent training and access to technology so that they can put the lessons from training into practice.

The 25th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC) will take place in Geneva from March 3rd to 28th. Information on the internet-related human rights issues that will be addressed there are provided by APC and Access in this briefing note.

The APC Women’s Rights Programme will be present at the 58th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, which will take place in New York on 10-21 March 2014. This year’s priority theme is “Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls”. Women’s and girls’ access to and participation in education, training, science and technology, and the promotion of women’s equal access to full employment and decent work, will also be on the agenda.