Freedom of Expression
We fight for your right to speak freely, which is critical for demonstrating dissent, guaranteeing a free press, and defending human rights.
Blog
Over 100 global civil society groups release human rights principles to govern surveillance
Recent revelations of sweeping government surveillance demonstrate the urgent need to update outdated privacy laws to reflect modern surveillance technologies in a way that is consistent with international human rights. To move toward that goal, Access is excited to announce the release of the International Principles on the Application of Human Rights to Communications Surveillance.…
31 July 2013
Blog
Commonwealth of Surveillance States: The dangers of Russian-made surveillance technology
Access recently released a paper by Peter Bourgelais, an Access Tech Fellow, highlighting the growing electronic surveillance in post-Soviet Central Asia and the difficulties of regulating its manufacture and distribution. In Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan, Russian-made technologies and companies dominate the market, and techniques that have limited regulatory efficacy elsewhere — such as export controls and public campaigning — are much less effective.
…29 June 2013
Blog
Telenor and Ooredoo win Myanmar telecoms licenses
Myanmar has chosen the two winners of its new telecoms licenses, Telenor Mobile Communications of Norway and Ooredoo of Qatar. After winning the highly competitive process, they will have their work cut out for them, both operationally and in with regards to human rights.…
27 June 2013
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Mixed bag for freedom of expression in Ecuador’s new Communications Law
After almost four years of discussion, Ecuador’s National Assembly passed a new Communications Law, providing a legal framework for the fundamental right to communications considered in the Constitution of 2008. While this new legislation represents a great advance for internet access, along with a more equitable distribution of public spectrum, it also contains some provisions that represent a threat to freedom of expression.…
27 June 2013
Blog
Access submits UPR report on Vietnam: Cyber attacks on civil society a key concern
Access has partnered with ARTICLE 19, PEN International, and English PEN on a joint submission on Vietnam to the United Nations Universal Periodic Review (UPR), which focuses on the lack of improvement of human rights, specifically freedom of expression, in Vietnam and highlights the Vietnamese government’s troubling response to the recent increase in cyber attacks against civil society.
…19 June 2013
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UN publishes report on surveillance and freedom of expression
Jeff Landale contributed to this post. A newly released UN report warns that human rights standards have fallen behind rapid advances in surveillance technology, arguing that states have an obligation to “revise national laws regulating [surveillance] in line with human…
6 June 2013
Blog
As Istanbul protests continue, government turns off live camera feeds from Taksim
As Istanbul’s Taksim Square swelled with protesters on Friday night, local authorities seemingly disabled livestreams from the municipality’s ‘Turistik Kameralar,’ or Tourist Cameras, that showed views of the plaza. By scraping the feed, Access was able to identify when the camera was disabled, as well as evidence that seems to prove that the feeds were disabled deliberately, rather than collapsing under ‘viewer load.’…
1 June 2013
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It’s time for companies to act: US eases sanctions on export of tech to Iran
Yesterday the US government announced a new round of sanctions relief for Iranian citizens, providing users with easier access to the internet and a wide range of personal communications technologies. With the road to export without the need for specific licenses explicitly cleared, now is the time for these companies to make their products and services available to Iranian users. …
31 May 2013
Blog
Chilean judge rules parody Twitter account not a criminal offense
Last month, a Chilean criminal court dismissed all charges against Rodrigo Ferrari, who was charged in February with the criminal offense of “identity usurpation,” for allegedly authoring the twitter accounts @losluksic, @luksicandronico, and @andronicoluksic, Twitter accounts that parodied the activities of the Luksic family, among the wealthiest families in Chile.…
15 May 2013
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Cautious optimism as US privacy oversight board finally confirms chair
The US Senate finally voted to confirm David Medine as the first Chair of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB), a government oversight body charged with protecting privacy and civil liberties in the United States.…
13 May 2013