We, the undersigned human rights organisations and academics, condemn the attempts to muzzle discussions on the unfolding genocide in Gaza at the 2025 edition of the Computers, Privacy and Data Protection (CPDP) conference in Brussels, Belgium, on 21-23 May.
Two accepted panels on Palestine were targeted after the preliminary programme was published online: Technologies at war: The role of tech companies and the EU in facilitating war crimes and genocide in Gaza, and Cyber Surveillance and Data Violence in Palestine: Protection, Practice, and Legality. CPDP approached the panel organisers and advised them to remove the word ‘genocide’ in the titles and descriptions, including references to crimes and violations of international law.
CPDP then unjustifiably singled out these two panels with a disclaimer that read: “The text of this panel represents the opinions of the Panel Organiser and not those of CPDP. The case before the ICJ regarding the categorization of Israel’s activities in Gaza has yet to be decided.” Upon the request of the panels’ organisers, the disclaimer was removed.
Discussions about human rights abuses, atrocity crimes, or genocide do not require a court ruling to be legitimate. At the core of international law and human rights work is prevention — a responsibility that also extends to private companies, which are expected to identify and mitigate risks of contributing to such abuses. These obligations are clear under the Four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The International Court of Justice (ICJ), in its provisionary measures orders, affirmed the responsibility of state and non-state actors to take actions in the face of a clear and imminent risk of genocide. Multiple UN bodies and experts, genocide scholars, and leading human rights organisations have already categorised the Israeli conduct in Gaza as genocide that has met all legal elements of this crime.
At a time when anti-Palestinian repression across Europe and worldwide is on the rise and international norms are at a breaking point, it’s more urgent than ever for conference hosts to defend civic space and uphold freedom of expression and academic freedom. As stated by the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, “no conflict in recent times has threatened freedom of expression so far beyond its borders as the war in Gaza.”
We stress that human rights are universal and cannot be dictated or ignored based on the identity of the victim or the perpetrator. While we condemn CPDP’s attempt to muzzle these discussions, we call on the organisers to commit to providing a space that offers a counterweight to anti-Palestinian repression across Europe by supporting and enabling the freedom of expression of Palestinian voices and academic work on Palestine. The world is indeed watching.
Signatories:
- Access Now
- Amnesty International
- Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO)
- Equinox Racial Justice Initiative
- 7amleh – The Arab Center for The Advancement of Social Media
- Members of the panels: Technologies at war: The role of tech companies and the EU in facilitating war crimes and genocide in Gaza, and Cyber Surveillance and Data Violence in Palestine: Protection, Practice, and Legality