[governance] Consensus call on rights theme - yes or no

Fri Sep 12 09:21:07 EDT 2008

Hi,

Like others I have some reservations about the rights text, but the issues
can be revisited and worked through down the line and shouldn¹t prevent the
caucus from providing needed inputs.  I vote yes on both texts.

Cheers,

Bill

On 9/11/08 11:51 PM, "Ian Peter" <ian.peter at ianpeter.com> wrote:

> Please respond within 48 hours with a YESor NO to adoption of this statement
> so it can be sent to the Secretariat before the deadline.
> 
>  
> 
> Rights and the Internet as the over-arching theme for IGF-4 in Egypt
> 
> 
> The Internet Governance Caucus strongly recommends that 'Rights and the
> Internet' be made the overarching theme for IGF-4 in Egypt, and that the
> IGF-4's program be framed by the desire for developing a rights-based
> discourse in the area of Internet Governance. The Caucus has already expressed
> support for the letter on this subject which was sent to the MAG by the
> Dynamic Coalition on an Internet Bill of Rights.
>  
>  
> The IGC offers the IGF assistance in helping to shape such a discourse at the
> IGF meetings, and specifically to help make 'Rights and the Internet' an
> overarching theme for IGF-4 in Egypt.
>  
> A complex new emerging ecology of rights and the internet
> 
>  
> 
>  One important purpose of a discourse on rights should be to clarify and reach
> greater consensus on how rights with respect to the Internet are defined, how
> they relate to pre-existing definitions of human rights, and which ones need
> to be internationally recognized and strengthened. Within this context, we
> acknowledge that, even within the civil society caucus, differences of opinion
> exist as to the nature of various rights and conceptual rights and the degree
> to which they should be emphasized in internet governance discussions.
>  
> While the internet opens unprecedented economic, social and political
> opportunities in many areas, many fear that it may at the same time be further
> widening economic, social and political divides. It is for this reason that
> development has been a central theme for the IGF meetings to date. In this
> new, more global and digital context it might be useful to explore what the
> term "right to development" means.
> 
>  
> 
> With respect to privacy rights, corporations and governments are increasingly
> able to extend digital tentacles into people¹s homes and personal devices, in
> manners invisible to consumers and citizens. Consumers of digital products
> thus face new challenges including the right
> <http://docs.google.com/RawDocContents?docID=dcskr5r9_7n2dnxhs&justBody=fa
> lse&revision=_latest&timestamp=1220550114112&editMode=true&str
> ip=true#sdfootnote3sym> to know and completely own¹ the products and services
> they pay for. Technological measures to monitor and control user behavior on
> the internet are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and often outrun public
> policies and traditional concepts of what rights users have.
> 
>  
> 
> While property rights are of considerable importance, their applicability and
> mutations in the digital environment have led to widespread political
> contention over the proper scope of copyrights, trademarks and patents. In
> fact, intellectual property is emerging as a primary area of socio-economic
> conflict in the information society.  The IGF can explore issues surrounding
> the public interest principles which underpin intellectual property claims
> alongside the concept of a right to access knowledge in the digital space It
> can also explore how individuals' property right to own, build, test, and use
> consumer electronics, computers and other forms of equipment can be reconciled
> with the regulation of technical circumvention to protect copyrights.
> 
> 
> It may also be useful to explore if and how other concepts may be meaningful
> in relation to the Internet  for instance, a right to access the Internet
> unconditional of the use being made of it (similar to electricity and
> telephone). Similarly, a right of cultural expression, and a right to have an
> Internet in ones own language, could inform the important IGF thematic area of
> cultural diversity.
>  
> Other important internet policy areas, like network neutrality, are being
> framed in terms of rights, such as a right to access and share information, or
> as an extension of freedom of expression itself. The right of the public to
> access government-produced information presents itself in a wholly new manner
> in a digital environment, where information is often publicly sharable at
> little or no extra cost. Positive acts of withholding digital public
> information from citizens in fact can be looked upon as a form of censorship.
> All of these rights-based conceptions may be included in the IGF openness
> theme area along with open standards Other rights such as the right of
> association and the right to political participation may have important new
> implications in the internet age,
> 
>  
> We recognize that while it is relatively easy to articulate and claim ³rights²
> it is much more difficult to agree on, implement and enforce them. We also
> recognize that rights claims can sometimes conflict or compete with each
> other. There can also be uncertainty about the proper application of a rights
> claim to a factual situation. The change in the technical methods of
> communication often undermines pre-existing understandings of how to apply
> legal categories.
> 
>  
> These complexities, however, only strengthen the case for using the IGF to
> explicitly discuss and debate these problems. There is no other global forum
> where such issues can be raised and explored in a non-binding context.
> 
> 
> Internet governance has up to this time largely been founded in technical
> principles and, increasingly, on the internet¹s functionality as a giant
> global marketplace. With the internet becoming  increasingly central to many
> social and political institutions, an alternative foundation and conceptual
> framework for IG can be explored. It is the view of the IG Caucus that a
> rights-based framework will be appropriate for this purpose.
> 
>  
> 
> A rights-based IG shouldn¹t be seen as threatening, but rather rights provide
> a set of international standards and guiding principles that can help to
> inform complex policy decisions. It is pertinent to recollect that WSIS called
> for a people-centric information society, and a rights framework helps develop
> people-centric IG agenda and polices.
>  
> 
> It is the Caucus¹ view that the IGF is the forum best suited to take up this
> task. This process should start at the IGF Hyderabad, where workshops on
> rights issues are being planned.  These issues will also hopefully figure
> prominently in the main sessions. The IGC fully expects that these discussions
> will help the IGF work towards developing Rights and the Internet¹ as the
> over-arching theme of the IGF-4 in Egypt.
> 
>  
> 
>  
>  
>  
> Ian Peter
> 
>  
> 
> 
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***********************************************************
William J. Drake  
Director, Project on the Information
  Revolution and Global Governance
Center for International Governance
Graduate Institute of International and
  Development Studies
Geneva, Switzerland
william.drake at graduateinstitute.ch
***********************************************************

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