[governance] Statement by IGC supporting rights and principles

Tue Sep 8 07:33:20 EDT 2009

This v.3 is fine with me. Thanks Lisa.
Best,
Meryem

Le 8 sept. 09 à 13:03, Lisa Horner a écrit :

> Hi all
>
> I agree that the original wording was too sweeping, but also think  
> that Meryem's point that it's not just governments who are the  
> culprits is an important one.  Companies are obviously involved in  
> online censorship and privacy violations, whether wittingly or  
> unwittingly, and many are pushing for overly restrictive copyright  
> which can limit access to information and expression.   
> Organisations and individuals who are involved in technological  
> design and standard setting also need to be aware of their impact  
> on the nature of communications technologies and whether they  
> support or undermine human rights.
>
> However, as has already been discussed, we need to strike a balance  
> between a general, awareness-raising statement and being explicit  
> enough so as not to confuse/mislead.  How about:
>
> "Fundamental human rights such as the rights to freedom of  
> expression, privacy and education are threatened by some internet  
> governance processes and practices.  Of particular concern are the  
> policies that many governments are pursuing at the national level."
>
> New draft statement 3 pasted below, incorporating Meryem's  
> suggestions about rights instruments.
>
> Thanks,
> Lisa
>
> ---------------------------------------
>
> DRAFT STATEMENT (v.3)
>
> The Caucus [and undersigned DCs] repeat their request that the  
> programme for IGF-4 in Egypt gives the required attention to human  
> rights.  The WSIS Declaration and Tunis Agenda reaffirmed the  
> centrality of human rights in the information society, but human  
> rights and associated principles have received very little  
> attention at the IGF so far.  This is problematic as:
>
> *	Fundamental human rights such as the rights to freedom of  
> expression, privacy and education are threatened by some internet  
> governance processes and practices.  Of particular concern are the  
> policies that many governments are pursuing at the national level.
> *	The internet presents new opportunities for upholding and  
> advancing human rights, for example through enhancing access to  
> knowledge and resources. It is vital that we build on and enhance  
> these opportunities.
> *	International human rights instruments are legally binding.   
> Governments who have signed these covenants have a legal obligation  
> and responsibility to uphold their citizens' human rights actively,  
> in the Internet era as before.
> *	The human rights framework is an internationally agreed set of  
> standards that has also has practical as well as ethical value.  It  
> balances different rights against each other to preserve individual  
> and public interest.  In addition to its legally binding  
> implications, the framework is therefore a useful tool for  
> addressing internet governance issues, such as how to deal with  
> security concerns on the internet in compliance with the rights to  
> freedom of expression and privacy.  Besides stating the obligations  
> of states and governments, the framework also allows us to derive  
> the rights and responsibilities of other stakeholders.
>
> The Internet Governance Caucus [and undersigned DCs] call for human  
> rights standards to be included in the planning and implementation  
> of all IGF sessions, so that they are given the attention they  
> deserve as cross-cutting issues.  This should include explicit  
> consideration of how global, regional and national policies affect  
> fundamental rights, and the development of positive policy  
> principles to build an open and accessible internet for all.  The  
> Caucus [and undersigned DCs] would like to offer assistance to the  
> organisers of the main plenary sessions to do this, and would like  
> to support all stakeholders through providing access to relevant  
> guidelines and experts.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: William Drake [mailto:william.drake at graduateinstitute.ch]
> Sent: 08 September 2009 11:07
> To: governance at lists.cpsr.org; Meryem Marzouki
> Subject: Re: [governance] Statement by IGC supporting rights and  
> principles
>
>
> On Sep 8, 2009, at 11:49 AM, Meryem Marzouki wrote:
>
>>
>> Le 8 sept. 09 à 11:38, William Drake a écrit :
>>
>>> Hi Meryem,
>>>
>>> On Sep 8, 2009, at 11:15 AM, Meryem Marzouki wrote:
>>>
>>>> Such a short statement, which purpose is to put the HR issue on
>>>> the table at IGF -- and nothing more -- should remain general
>>>> enough.
>>>> If there is real and shared insistance that the sentence be
>>>> watered down, then we could says "... threatened by SOME current
>>>> IG processes and practice". Although this seems obvious..
>>>> Finally, a statement should be read in its globality. The final
>>>> paragraph mentions "global, regional and national policiies",
>>>> showing that the statement makes a difference between these
>>>> policies at different levels.
>>>
>>> My suggestion pertained to the examples Ginger gave, which were of
>>> national level government censorship.  If you'd like to suggest
>>> more encompassing yet differentiated language and try to get
>>> consensus on it feel free, but as McTim notes, "are threatened by
>>> current internet governance processes and practice" seems too
>>> sweepingly totalizing.
>>
>> If it seems totalizing, then let's make sure there is no
>> misunderstanding, and have the statement simply says "... threatened
>> by SOME OF THE current IG processes and practice". Is that agreeable
>> to you and Mc Tim?
>
> Sure it's agreeable, but I doubt it ensures there'll be no
> misunderstanding.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Bill____________________________________________________________
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