[Chapter-delegates] NEWS RELEASE: Internet Society Welcomes Decision by the18th Human Rights Council

[Wende Cover]

Internet Society Welcomes Decision by the 18th Human Rights Council for the
Creation of a Multi-Stakeholder Panel on Freedom of Expression on the
Internet

 

[GENEVA, SWITZERLAND, 03 October 2011] -- The Internet Society welcomes the
decision of the 18th Human Rights Council (12-30 September 2011, Geneva) to
accept the proposal made by the Swedish Government for the creation of an
Expert Panel on Freedom of Expression on the Internet to convene at the 19th
Session of the Human Rights Council in March 2012.  We applaud the decision
to ensure multi-stakeholder participation in the discussions that will focus
on the ways and means to improve protection and promotion of freedom of
speech in line with international human rights law.

 

Markus Kummer, Vice President of Public Policy for the Internet Society,
made the following comments:

 

"We welcome this decision. It reflects the substantial role that the
Internet plays in enabling the realization of a wide range of human rights,
such as freedom of expression and opinion, as enshrined in Article 19 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This decision is very timely.
Increased attempts by Governments around the world to control their
citizen's access and use of the global network, and often with disregard to
the basic principles of human rights and due process, make it urgent to
address these issues."

 

This development follows on the release of a report on the Right to Freedom
of Opinion and Expression
(http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/17session/A.HRC.17.27_e
n.pdf) at the 17th Session of the Human Rights Council, as well as the
subsequent cross-regional statement by 40 Governments
(http://www.regeringen.se/sb/d/14186/a/170565), recognizing that the same
fundamental rights that individuals enjoy offline are also applicable to the
online world. We also recognize this multi-stakeholder initiative as a
positive contribution to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)
implementation process (Action Line C10 "Ethical Dimensions of the
Information Society").

 

The open, decentralized, and global nature of the Internet has set the
foundation for an unprecedented growth for the potential of freedom of
expression and peaceful assembly throughout the world. The "Arab Spring" has
demonstrated that the Internet can be an instrumental tool to sustain
people's aspirations for freedom and social development.

 

However, the same technology that benefits billions of people throughout the
world has raised significant challenges for governments and Internet users.
Among them, we observe that some governments control their citizen's access
and use of the global network in order to meet economic, security, or
political objectives in an evolving policy landscape. For example, DNS
blocking and filtering is one of the solutions used by some governments to
block access to web sites which have been identified to distribute illicit
content. Other measures used include surveillance technology or suspension
of Internet access. We caution against resorting to technological shortcuts
to achieve public policy objectives.  Beyond raising concerns with regard to
respect of due process, freedom of expression, and other human rights, such
actions can threaten the good functioning of the global Internet as a
single, unified, and global communications network.

 

The Internet Society looks forward to seeing the UN Council of Human Rights
focusing on the protection and promotion of people's fundamental rights in
the online world, and will gladly provide its expertise in this domain.

 

About the Internet Society 

The Internet Society is the world's trusted independent source of leadership
for Internet policy, technology standards, and future development. Based on
its principled vision and substantial technological foundation, the Internet
Society works with its members and Chapters around the world to promote the
continued evolution and growth of the open Internet through dialog among
companies, governments, and other organizations around the world. For more
information, see: http://www.internetsociety.org
<http://www.internetsociety.org/> 

 

Media Contact: Wende Cover, cover at isoc.org, +1-703-439-2773

 

 

 

 

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