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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 Presentation
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African Declaration on Internet Rights and
FreedomsPresentation 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
• 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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;
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
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.
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
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
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
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”
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
Key Principles Right to Development
Privacy
Security on the Internet
Right to Due Process
Democratic Internet Governance Framework
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
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
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
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
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.
Thank You!