[governance] Final Text on Rights - now sent to IGF Secretariat

[Ian Peter]

Thanks to everyone who participated, I have now forwarded the text below to
the IGF Secretariat for inclusion in the synthesis paper

 

 

Ian Peter

 

 

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 people's homes and
personal devices, in manners invisible to consumers and citizens.

Consumers of digital products thus face new challenges including the right
to know and completely 'own' 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.  

 

The right to freedom of expression is at the very heart of the Internet's
open and participatory nature, and both new opportunities for, and new
threats to, this right have emerged in the digital ecology. 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
"rights" 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 Internet's 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 shouldn't 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 policies. 

 

 

It is the Caucus' 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
Internet' as the over-arching theme of the IGF-4 in Egypt. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.igcaucus.org/pipermail/governance/attachments/20080914/a7c00a44/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
____________________________________________________________
You received this message as a subscriber on the list:
     governance at lists.cpsr.org
To be removed from the list, send any message to:
     governance-unsubscribe at lists.cpsr.org

For all list information and functions, see:
     http://lists.cpsr.org/lists/info/governance