african declaration on internet rights and freedoms
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African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms. Presentation by: Edetaen Ojo Media Rights Agenda, Nigeria. Motivation. To develop a set of principles which would inform – perhaps inspire – policy & legislative processes on Internet rights, freedoms & governance in Africa - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
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African Declaration on Internet Rights and
FreedomsPresentation by:
Edetaen Ojo
Media Rights Agenda, Nigeria
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Motivation
• To develop a set of principles which would inform – perhaps inspire – policy & legislative processes on Internet rights, freedoms & governance in Africa
• The principles should have broad application at national, sub-regional & regional levels.
• A major goal is to the Principles endorsed by national governments, regional bodies, international institutions & a range of actors & stakeholders.
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Rationale• Access to the Internet is increasing rapidly
across the African continent
• But political leaders seeking to adopt policies, regulations or laws appear to be learning or replicating international worst practices
• In most cases, critical stakeholders are excluded from policy or legislative processes & their interests are not taken into account.
• Often, bad laws are taken from other regions & adapted in African countries.
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Process• Following informal discussions among a small
group of CSOs on the continent, a Planning Meeting was held in Nairobi, Kenya, in September 2013 on the margins of the AfIGF.
• The meeting outlined a plan & strategies for actualizing the idea.
• This was followed in February 2014 by a larger two-day meeting in Johannesburg.
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Process (Contd.)• The Johannesburg meeting brought together civil
society stakeholders from across Africa to discuss the initiative & agree on a broad outline for the Declaration
• The meeting constituted a “Drafting Team” to develop a draft Declaration.
• It was agreed that their work would be guided by established human rights principles, relevant regional & international instruments & the opinions of experts, e.g. the UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion & Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion & Expression.
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Process (Contd.)• An initial draft of the Declaration was
produced by a 2-person Drafting Team.
• The draft was subsequently subjected to comments & inputs from the entire Drafting Team.
• Comments & inputs were also received from other experts both from Africa & internationally.
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Process (Contd.)• Based on the comments & inputs, a revised
draft of the Declaration was produced.
• The revised draft of the Declaration was launched for public comments on July 8, 2014, in the public consultation phase of the process.
• It was available for comments on a dedicated website: www.africaninternetrights.org from then until August 4, 2014.
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Process (Contd.)• The draft Declaration was presented &
discussed during the African Internet Governance Forum (AfIGF) in Abuja, Nigeria, on July 12, 2014.
• It was also presented & discussed at a meeting of the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI), which took place in Lagos, Nigeria, on July 15, 2014.
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Process (Contd.)• Comments & inputs were also actively sought
from other key stakeholder groups through direct engagements.
• Such key stakeholder groups included:
Representatives of national governments or government institutions;
Civil society organizations – national, regional & international
Media organizations, professional associations & unions;
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Process (Contd.)Academic institutions;
Representatives of regional bodies, such as the AU Commission, NEPAD, the African Commission on Human &
Peoples’ Rights, including the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression &
Access to Information in Africa
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Process (Contd.)• A Drafters’ Meeting was held in Jo’burg on
August 5 & 6, 2014.
• The meeting was convened to discuss the various comments & suggestions coming from the public consultations & engagements.
• Many of these comments & suggestions have been incorporated into the Declaration
• A further revised draft of the Declaration is now going through an internal confirmation process.
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Key Elements• The latest version of the Declaration has
four main sections, namely:
Preamble
Key Principles
Application of the Principles (Realising the Principles)
Call to Action
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Preamble• The Preamble acknowledges the Internet as “an
enabling space & resource for the realisation of all human rights”
• It references some regional & international instruments & documents that have facilitated human rights protection & the free flow of information, including:
The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights
The Windhoek Declaration on Promoting an Independent and Pluralistic African Press
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PreambleThe African Charter on Broadcasting
The Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression in Africa
The African Platform on Access to Information Declaration
The Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression & the Internet of the four Special Rapporteurs on Freedom of Expression in 2011
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PreambleThe UN Human Rights Council resolution
on The promotion, protection enjoyment of human rights on the Internet; &
The UN General Assembly resolution on The right to privacy in the digital age.
• It asserts that “it is of critical importance that all African stakeholders make a commitment now to invest in creating an enabling and empowering Internet environment which truly serves the needs of African citizens”
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Key Principles• The Declaration contains 11 “Key Principles”,
around:
Openness
Internet Access and Affordability
Freedom of Opinion and Expression
Right to Information
Freedom of Assembly and Association on the Internet
Cultural and Linguistic Diversity
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Key Principles Right to Development
Privacy
Security on the Internet
Right to Due Process
Democratic Internet Governance Framework
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Application of Principles• In the section on the application of the
principles, which deals with realising the principles on the Internet, the Declaration touches upon the following issues:
Openness
Access and Affordability
Freedom of Expression and Opinion
Linguistic and cultural diversity
The Right to Development
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Application of Principles (Contd.)Personal Data Protection
Surveillance
Marginalised Groups
Access to Knowledge and Education
Gender
Journalism and Citizen Reporting
Right to Information and Open Data
Democratic Internet Governance Framework
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Call to Action• The Call to Action section targets a number of
actors/stakeholders with specific requests, including for them to endorse the Declaration.
• Those targeted in the Call to Action include:
National Governments in Africa
Pan-African and African Regional Organisations and Institutions, including the AU, the ACHPR, the African Telecommunications Union
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Call to Action (Contd.)International Organisations, including the
UN Secretary General, the UN General Assembly, the UN Human Rights Council, UNESCO & the ITU
Civil Society
Media Organisations
Companies operating in Africa
Technical communities
Academic, research & training institutions in Africa
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Next Steps• There will be a soft launch of the Declaration
during the IGF in Istanbul, Turkey, on September 4, 2014
• There will also be a soft launch of the Declaration at the Highway Africa Conference in Rhodes University on September 7, 2014
• A hard launch will follow later in the year
• Ongoing advocacy programme to secure endorsements & ensure visibility.
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Thank You!