lebanon
<p>Our member SMEX is hosting its annual Bread&Net event on 1-4 December to address digital rights in the new reality: one that has impacted the digital economy, shifted the conversation around surveillance, and presented new opportunities for governments to censor online speech.</p>
On 30 August, Lebanese internet users reported an internet disruption that made it almost impossible to access platforms like Twitter. This outage affected many websites and services globally, but not all internet service providers nor all internet services in Lebanon were affected the same.
Temporary internet disruptions and shutdowns pose serious challenges to the exercise of a wide range of rights and cannot be justified under any pretext. We therefore call on the Lebanese authorities to lift all restrictions on internet access and restore telecommunications to full capacity.
APC member in Lebanon Social Media Exchange (SMEX) published this piece on digital rights issues in the Middle East and North Africa.
This submission highlights areas of concern that Social Media Exchange (SMEX) and APC hope will inform the Human Rights Committee’s consideration of the Lebanese government’s compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights concerning Article 17, on the right to privacy.
Social Media Exchange (SMEX) is a registered Lebanese NGO that works to advance self-regulating information societies in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). APCNews interviewed Jessica Dheere and Mohamad Najem, the co-directors of SMEX, which just joined the APC network.
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.
“The gay rights movement in Lebanon would not be anywhere near where it is today if it weren’t for the internet”. In the midst of strongly censored neighbours, Lebanon enjoys online freedom that is hampered only by very slow and very expensive internet connections – but is that freedom there to stay? In a country where homosexuality is punishable by upto two years in prison, Nadine Moaw...
