[grc] UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Freedom of Expression Demands Urgent Boost for Online Rights Amidst Rampant State Censorship - Gender

[Frieda Werden]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: WUNRN LISTSERVE <WUNRN_LISTSERVE at lists.wunrn.com>
Date: Tue, Jun 13, 2017 at 2:23 PM
Subject: [WUNRN] UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Freedom of
Expression Demands Urgent Boost for Online Rights Amidst Rampant State
Censorship - Gender
To: WUNRN ListServe <wunrn_listserve at lists.wunrn.com>


WUNRN

http://www.wunrn.com



http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.
aspx?NewsID=21725&LangID=E



UN Special Rapporteur Freedom of Expression – Website:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomOpinion/Pages/OpinionIndex.aspx



Link to Access Full Special Rapporteur 2017 Report to the UN Human Rights
Council:  http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=A/HRC/35/22



UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Freedom of Expression Demands

Urgent Boost for Online Rights Amidst Rampant State Censorship

GENEVA (12 June 2017) – Urgent action is needed to safeguard people’s
online rights in the face of unprecedented and worsening State clampdowns,
a United Nations human rights expert has warned in a new report
<http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomOpinion/Pages/SR2017ReporttoHRC.aspx>
.

Governments and companies should act now to tackle major threats such as
the deliberate shutdown of internet access, censorship and data collection,
said David Kaye, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the
right to freedom of opinion and expression, as he presented his report to
the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

“States are denying internet and telecommunications access in blunt and
unprecedented ways,” Mr. Kaye said.

“They are shutting down - or demanding that third parties shut down -
services, including in times of public protest and mass dissent. Many are
demanding that service providers retain and share user data. Still others
are rolling back much-needed protections for net neutrality,” he noted.

Mr. Kaye added: “In short, State censorship and surveillance targeting the
foundations of the internet and telecommunications infrastructure often
have a crippling effect on everyone’s right to seek, receive and impart
information.”

The report finds that governments are increasingly relying on
telecommunications companies, internet service providers, and other parties
to suppress and monitor expression online.

But it also warns that the industry is contributing of its own accord to
restricting freedom of expression, for example by interfering with net
neutrality.

“Private sector firms are critical to the future of freedom of expression,
as providers of internet and telecommunications access to hundreds of
millions of people worldwide,” said the UN expert.

“Whether under protest, in silent acquiescence, or as willing participants,
the private sector has often facilitated some of the most troubling trends
in online censorship and surveillance,” he pointed out.

“States must take steps to resist requests or demands that lead to
unlawful, unnecessary, or disproportionate interference with digital
access,” the human rights expert stressed.

In an increasingly hostile environment for individual users and groups, the
report outlines a series of steps that the digital access industry can take
to identify, prevent, and mitigate risks to freedom of expression and
related human rights.

“As suppliers of a service which should be provided for the public good,
digital access firms have a special responsibility to safeguard the freedom
of expression of millions of internet users worldwide,” Mr. Kay said.

“Basic steps such as due diligence, responsible design choices and
transparency go a long way in protecting the rights and safety of users.”

The report follows a year of study and consultation with governments, civil
society, academics and technical experts worldwide. It is part of a series
of studies conducted by the Special Rapporteur for the Human Rights Council
that includes work on encryption and anonymity
<http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=A/HRC/29/32> and freedom of
expression on the internet
<http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=A/HRC/32/38>.

Mr. Kaye will soon be inviting submissions for forthcoming studies on the
regulation of expression on private internet platforms, especially social
media networks and search engines.

*Mr. David Kaye* (USA) was appointed as Special Rapporteur on the promotion
and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
<http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomOpinion/Pages/OpinionIndex.aspx> in
August 2014 by the UN Human Rights Council. As Special Rapporteur, Mr. Kaye
is part of what is known as the Special Procedures
<http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/Pages/Welcomepage.aspx> of the Human
Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts
in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s
independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either
specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world.
Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN
staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from
any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.

 _________________________________________________
- To unsubscribe, send a new email addressed to: imail at lists.wunrn.com,
with the message: unsubscribe WUNRN_LISTSERVE
- To contact the list's administrator, send an email addressed to:
WUNRN_LISTSERVE-owner at lists.wunrn.com



-- 
Frieda Werden, Series Producer
WINGS: Women's International News Gathering Service www.wings.org